title: Reaching across boundaries: a military providers and public schools partnership on behalf of children with special needs.
abstract: In January 2011, Neurodevelopmental Pediatrics, a division of the Pediatric Department at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth established a collaborative effort with the local public school systems called the Community Partnership Forum. This performance improvement initiative was designed to strengthen community relationships and communication between Neurodevelopmental Pediatrics, the local public school systems, and diverse military and civilian agencies engaged in the education and care of military children with disabilities in Hampton Roads, Virginia. It was developed as a result of military families and providers voicing concerns about ongoing obstacles with special education-related services. The goal was to create a local multifaceted process to mitigate myths and promote a shared understanding of educational resources in the medical and educational systems. This article summarizes this collegial process between the medical center, the public school systems, and diverse military and community agencies.
authors.affiliation: Neurodevelopmental Pediatrics, Pediatrics Department, Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, 620 John Paul Jones Circle, Portsmouth, VA 23708.
authors.forename: Glenda
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lewis-Fleming
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D003142:Communication; D003159:Community-Institutional Relations; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D019988:Children with Disabilities; D004519:Education, Special / Q000592:standards*; D005178:Faculty; D006801:Humans; D008887:Military Medicine; D008889:Military Personnel; D020380:Needs Assessment; D012574:Schools; D014768:Virginia