EDIS helps children of active-duty members Published Oct. 17, 2008 By Holly Birchfield 78 ABW/PA ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. -- Grace Furr was born with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome, a condition where the left ventricle of the heart doesn't properly form. Staff Sgt. Robert Furr, a network manager in the Integrated Network Operations Security Center East Detachment 1 in the 83rd Network Operations Squadron, and Laura Furr, Grace's parents, discovered their daughter's condition one day into her life. After Grace endured two open heart surgeries and extensive hospital stays, her parents realized their 2-year-old daughter was behind in her development such as talking and gross motor skills. Her parents knew she needed help to reach these critical milestones. Mrs. Furr said Grace received assistance through services in Birmingham, Ala., where they previously lived, and she knew her daughter would need to continue similar services at Robins. The young mother found that help through the Educational and Developmental Intervention Services, an Air Force program that helps such children gain valuable developmental skills. "They just truly go above and beyond," she said. "LeAnn Scott, the EDIS coordinator, worked with my husband six months before we ever got to Georgia. He was stationed in Korea for a year. She did all of the paperwork for us to make sure they provided all the services that we needed." LeeAnn Scott, EDIS coordinator in the 78th Medical Operations Squadron, said EDIS, which serves children from birth through 3 years, involves the services of speech and language therapists, occupational therapists, physical therapists, and a developmental pediatrician in its screenings of children and works with families one-on-one in the home. Ms. Scott said she wants military families who make permanent changes of station to Robins to know about EDIS. "Parents can self refer," she said. "They can call in and say, 'I have a concern about the way my child is developing' and we'll make a home visit and do some screening to decide if there's anything else we need to do." Ms. Scott said she gets referrals from private doctors and has been working with the Pediatric Clinic on base to do the screenings through well baby checks. In 2007, more than 650 babies were screened, 23 of which were identified with special needs, Ms. Scott said. Ms. Scott said a five-area questionnaire addresses various developmental milestones. "It's just critical that every child's development starts early and the earlier that we can catch a child that's having difficulty with his speech, with his motor control, or with his social skills, the better," she said. "If we can get him on track before he starts school, then he has a leg up. If we wait until school age to remediate him, then he will fall farther behind." Susan Daughtry, a speech and language pathologist for EDIS who diagnoses and treats children with language problems, said it's very important for parents to get their children help as soon as they know there's a problem. "Research has shown that the earlier you intervene with these types of problems, the better the chance for the child to reach the level of his or her peers," she said. Ms. Daughtry said working within the child's home helps her to include the child's family, an important part of ensuring therapy continues between the parents and their child. Maj. Wendy Travis, 78th MDOS' Mental Health Flight commander, said EDIS is an invaluable resource to the active-duty military family. "It is a life saver for families who have children with special needs," she said. "I encourage any family who has a child that they think may be developing a little slower than their peers to call and see what LeeAnn can do to help them."