CT Children’s launches Down syndrome program

Hartford’s Connecticut Children’s Medical Center is launching a new Comprehensive Down Syndrome Program (CDSP) that aims to facilitate a coordinated and integrated system of care for children with Down syndrome from birth to 18 years of age.

The program is being run as a collaborative effort with the Connecticut Down Syndrome Congress.

Services offered for children with Down syndrome will include consultative evaluation; care coordination; referrals to Connecticut Children’s sub-specialists; support services for children with Down syndrome, their families and caregivers; and transitional assistance to provide continuity of care as patients reach adulthood.

“The goal of the Comprehensive Down Syndrome Program is to address and integrate all aspects of a child’s developmental care including medical, emotional, behavioral, educational and psycho-social needs,” said Dr. Robert Greenstein, Connecticut Children’s Medical Director of the Comprehensive Down Syndrome Program. “The program is designed to provide the Connecticut sub-specialists and area physicians who treat children with Down syndrome, as well as their patients, with the resources for integrated, coordinated, continuous care.”

Down syndrome occurs in approximately one in every 700 births. In Connecticut, an estimated 40 to 50 children are born each year with Down syndrome.¹