Center for Child Health and Development to celebrate 50th year

Apr 23, 2008

Dr. Matt Reese, PhD, director of the Center for Child Health and Development, works with a child at an outreach clinic in Dodge City.

The Center for Child Health and Development will celebrate its 50^th Anniversary with an open house from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. on May 2. The Center is located on Olathe Boulevard directly across from the Olathe Parking Garage.

This event will celebrate the Center's history and commitment to serving children with developmental concerns and their families. The Center for Child Health and Development, a part of the Schiefelbusch Lifespan Institute and the Kansas University Center of Excellence in Developmental Disabilities, has been on the forefront in advocating and developing innovative programs with community partners to support individuals with developmental disabilities and their families.

“Ideally, a child with a developmental issue should receive an early and accurate diagnosis, but for many families, it is difficult to obtain,” said Lisa Hull, Director of Operations for The Center for Child Health and Development. “Typically parents are referred to a parade of individual providers, each discerning a fragmented view of their child according to that provider's specialty, often making counter recommendations. At the CCHD, we address the whole child by conducting interdisciplinary diagnostic clinics. Providers from multiple disciplines (medicine, psychology, speech language pathology, physical therapy, and occupational therapy) contribute information to help arrive at a consensus regarding diagnosis and develop a cohesive treatment plan.”

Dr. Matt Reese, PhD, appointed as the Center Director in July 2007, is a nationally known leader in the area of autism diagnosis and model program development. The Center also has one of the premier programs for training inter-disciplinary teams of students to be leaders in the area of developmental disabilities, and in partnership with the Kansas Center for Autism Research and Training provides the latest information on autism research. “Our goal is to translate research into practice so families across the state of Kansas and the region can benefit from the latest findings available,” Dr. Reese explained.

During the open house, staff will be available to give tours of the recently refurbished clinical area and answer questions. From 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., there will be a special time to honor children with disabilities who have completed artwork at the Kemper Museum ArtReach project. The CCHD/Kemper Museum ArtReach Project brings together children with disabilities and typically developing children to learn about art and discover their own artistic abilities.