written by Kim O’Brien Root
It was 1953 when a group of parents and community members, concerned that people with disabilities weren’t getting the inclusion and diversity they deserved, joined with the Woman’s Club of Warwick to form what would one day become VersAbility Resources.
From its inception, the organization’s goal was to establish services that were missing at the time — services that would help those with disabilities better thrive. As time went on, more programs were added, from those that provided social and recreational activities to those that provided employment across the community.
It was only natural that VersAbility would reach out to the youngest and most vulnerable of the population.
Since 1975, VersAbility’s EPIC program, or Early Prevention and Intervention for Children, has been making sure children with disabilities or delays are getting the services and therapy they need from the moment they’re born. EPIC connects infants and toddlers with disabilities or delays — and their families — with therapists, early childhood educators, parenting classes and more. Because research shows that the first three years of a child’s life are the most important years for learning, the program serves ages 0-3.
For new parents with children who might have a disability or delay, navigating the supports that their child might need can be daunting. That’s where a program like EPIC can help, providing a dedicated team of service coordinators and therapists to guide parents through the process and to make sure their children receive the support needed to be successful in school, work, and life.
“We always tell our families to think of us as a liaison between themselves and the people coming in to support them,” says Robin Drummond, the manager of the EPIC program.
Serving Children on the Peninsula
All states have early childhood intervention programs, which go by different names in different communities. VersAbility’s EPIC program serves children in Hampton and Newport News under the age of 3. Currently, there are 213 children in the program, with another 50 going through the enrollment process, according to Drummond.
EPIC works like this: Children are referred by a doctor, social services or other agency, or the parents themselves may ask for services. After being filtered through an informational network called the Infant and Toddler Connection, Hampton and Newport News cases go to EPIC. One of eight service coordinators who work with the Hampton-based group then contacts the parents.
“Sometimes when we call the parent for an initial appointment, they wonder, ‘Why are you calling me?’ ” Drummond says. “It could be because a pediatrician had a concern at a well-baby check-up.”
To qualify for EPIC’s services, a child has to meet one of several key factors:
- Have a 25 percent delay in one or more developmental areas.
- Demonstrate atypical development, such as with motor or social skills.
- Be diagnosed with physical or mental conditions such as Down syndrome, vision and/or hearing loss or autism.
If a child qualifies, an Individual Families Service Plan, or IFSP, is created to follow the child through his or her time with the program and to document everything. The child, meanwhile, begins receiving services they need, such as speech, occupational and physical therapies. EPIC works with a number of therapeutic providers who go directly into the child’s home — in their natural environment — to provide the necessary services.
Meanwhile, the EPIC coordinator keeps tabs on it all, making sure all the pieces are moving as they should.
We’re always in constant contact with the parent, and also with the therapist coming into the home,” Drummond said.
It’s important to note that EPIC is a purely volunteer program, Drummond says. Parents can start the process at any time, and can stop at any time. But there are many parents who start their children in the program as infants and stay with it until they age out at 3 — from there, children can transition into programs such as Head Start, a federal early education program, or preschool.
“Families need to know that early intervention really is a support system,” Drummond says. “Parents are their children’s biggest teachers — they decide how early intervention will be involved in their child’s life.”
Learning to Eat
Hampton mother Debra Vance can’t pinpoint the exact moment she got involved with EPIC, but she knows that without the program, her son’s life would likely be very different right now.
Born with Down syndrome, Ethan Vance had two holes in his heart and fluid in his chest. He spent five months in the hospital, during which time he had open heart surgery. He finally came home with a surgically placed gastrostomy tube. He wouldn’t eat and was completely orally aversive. What that meant was this: You’d touch Ethan’s lips, and he’d puke.
Drummond was assigned as the Vance family’s coordinator. When Debra Vance first met with Drummond and was asked how EPIC could help her, Vance’s plea was simple: “I need him to eat.” Drummond quickly set up therapists to go to the Vances’ home to work with Ethan.
Within two years, Ethan’s feeding tube was removed. The Vances later stayed with the therapist who had worked wonders with their son, right up until she retired earlier this year.
“I got the right therapist who knew exactly what we needed,” Vance says. “Now, seven years later, Ethan eats everything under the sun. Because we took advantage of EPIC and what they had to offer, I think Ethan made tremendous progress. Had we not, we might still be where we were.”
Pivoting in the Face of Change
The coronavirus pandemic has meant some changes for EPIC, which has typically done in-person intake visits to first meet parents and children. That way, they could see firsthand what services were most needed. The threat of COVID-19 meant intakes had to be done by phone, although EPIC will soon start doing intakes by video conference.
Some parents have put services on hold during the pandemic, while others have opted for video visits with therapists who normally would visit homes. Despite the hiccups, EPIC coordinators have made sure to stay in contact with and support their families, Drummond says.
Pandemic or not, though, Drummond always worries about the children who aren’t getting the services they deserve, and she encourages parents to consider the program. The initial assessment is free, and EPIC will help parents navigate through insurance and financial channels if need be.
“It can be very scary to seek out answers, but early intervention is a wonderful resource,” Drummond says.
I would always encourage parents to at least go through the assessment. You can learn what your baby or toddler is doing well and what to look for in the future. It at least gives you a baseline.”
Above all, don’t think there isn’t anyone who can help your child, Drummond says. There is always something — some therapist, some program, out there.
Debra Vance can attest to that. When EPIC sent therapist Michelle Donnelly from Dominion Physical Therapy & Associates to help Ethan, it was as if a savior on a white stallion rode in, Vance now says, only partly joking.
“We tried, we tried and tried, and I did everything she said, and it worked,” Vance says. “It was amazing. It was absolutely amazing. I’m so grateful for the EPIC program, and I’m so grateful for her.”