Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month is celebrated every March

Developmental disabilities are a group of conditions due to an impairment in physical, learning, language, or behavior areas.

These conditions begin during the child's developmental period, may impact day-to-day functioning, and usually last throughout a person's lifetime. Most developmental disabilities begin before a baby is born, but some can happen after birth because of injury, infection, or other factors.

Some examples of a developmental disability include:

• Autism spectrum disorder: Can impact a person's behavior
• Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): Impacts a person's behavior, including: inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity.  
• Cerebral palsy: Impacts the nervous system
• Down syndrome: Can impact a person's intellect 
• Fetal alcohol syndrome: Can impact a person's intellect, behavior, and physical abilities 
• Fragile X syndrome: Can impact a person's intellect 
• Hearing loss: Impacts a person's sensory system 
• Intellectual disability: Can impact a person's intellect
• Spina bifida: Can impact a person's physical abilities 

Developmental disabilities occur among all racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups. Recent estimates in the United States show that about 1 in 6, or about 17%, of children aged 3 through 17 years have one or more developmental disabilities, such as ADHD, Autism spectrum disorder, Cerebral palsy, Hearing loss, Fragile X syndrome, Tourette syndrome and other developmental disabilities.

Source:

https://www.cdc.gov/child-development/about/developmental-disability-basics.html#cdc_generic_section_2-who-is-affected

The Surgeon General’s Framework for Workplace Mental Health and Well-Being emphasizes the connection between the well-being of workers and the health of organizations. It offers a foundation and resources that can be used by workplaces of any size, across any industry.

Sustainable change must be driven by committed leaders in continuous collaboration with the valued workers who power each workplace.

The most important asset in any organization is its people. By choosing to center their voices, we can ensure that everyone has a platform to thrive.

Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 24 Jan. 2025, www.hhs.gov/surgeongeneral/reports-and-publications/workplace-well-being/index.html. Accessed 24 Feb. 2025.

Components

Creating a plan with all workers to enact these components can help reimagine workplaces as engines of well-being.

Protection from Harm

•   Prioritize workplace physical and psychological safety

•   Enable adequate rest

•   Normalize and support mental health

•   Operationalize DEIA* norms, policies, and programs

Connection & Community

•   Create cultures of inclusion and belonging

•   Cultivate trusted relationships

•   Foster collaboration and teamwork

Work-Life Harmony

•   Provide more autonomy over how work is done

•   Make schedules as flexible and predictable as possible

•   Increase access to paid leave

•   Respect boundaries between work and non-work time

Mattering at Work

•   Provide a living wage

•   Engage workers in workplace decisions

•   Build a culture of gratitude and recognition

•   Connect individual work with organizational mission

Opportunity for Growth

•   Offer quality training, education, and mentoring

•   Foster clear, equitable pathways for career advancement

•   Ensure relevant, reciprocal feedback

*Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Accessibility

April 21st - 25th, 2025 | Virtual Training

Family Peer Support Specialist Training

Youth Peer Support Specialist Training

When mobile crisis teams include family peers, families have someone who has walked in their shoes to guide them through this overwhelming experience. Learn about the data from a North Carolina pilot that shows that partnering with family peers in mobile crisis teams improves youth and family outcomes. You’ll also take away knowledge to apply this program’s structure and lessons learned to a mobile crisis team that integrates family peers in your state.

March 11th, 2025

3:00 p.m. ET

Register

If you have a comment, suggestion, or think you are, or know, a good guest please reach out via email to dads@kypartnership.org.

Substance Use Treatment Locator

Millions of Americans have a substance use disorder. Help is available. FindTreatment.gov.

Find Treatment in KY

Use this website to find facilities and providers who are actively taking new clients. https://findhelpnow.org/ky

Disaster Distress Helpline

1-800-985-5990 or text TalkWithUs to 66746).

Website: www.samhsa.gov/find-help/disaster-distress-helpline

Behavioral Health Treatment Services Locator

Find alcohol, drug, or mental health treatment facilities and programs around the country at findtreatment.samhsa.gov.