Ability Network, Inc.

04/05/2026

04/02/2026

Today is World Autism Awareness Day, and it is observed annually on April 2nd. It is celebrated to increase global understanding, acceptance, and inclusion of autistic individuals. Established by the United Nations, it highlights the need for better support, early diagnosis, and the promotion of rights and opportunities in education, healthcare, and employment.

April 2 is World Autism Awareness Day! Help increase understanding and acceptance of autism by becoming an ally and advocating to protect autism initiatives.

04/01/2026

This month, we celebrate Occupational Therapy Month. A special THANK YOU to all the Ability Network occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants for your hard work and efforts to help children live their lives more independently and to their fullest!

03/21/2026

Happy World Down Syndrome Day!

A few facts:

Down syndrome occurs when an individual has a full or partial extra copy of chromosome 21. This additional genetic material alters the course of development and causes the characteristics associated with Down syndrome.

There are three types of Down syndrome: trisomy 21 (nondisjunction) accounts for 95% of cases, translocation accounts for about 3%, and mosaicism accounts for about 2%.
Approximately one in every 640 babies in the United States is born with Down syndrome, making Down syndrome the most common chromosomal condition. About 5,700 babies with Down syndrome are born in the United States each year.

Down syndrome occurs in people of all races and economic levels.

The incidence of births of children with Down syndrome increases with the age of the mother. But due to higher fertility rates in younger women, 51% of children with Down syndrome are born to women under 35 years of age.

People with Down syndrome have an increased risk for certain medical conditions, such as congenital heart defects, respiratory and hearing problems, Alzheimer’s disease, childhood leukemia, and thyroid conditions. Many of these conditions are now treatable, so most people with Down syndrome lead healthy lives.

Common physical traits of Down syndrome include low muscle tone, small stature, an upward slant to the eyes, and a single deep crease across the center of the palm. Every person with Down syndrome is a unique individual and may possess these characteristics to different degrees or not at all.

Life expectancy for people with Down syndrome has increased dramatically in recent decades, from 25 in 1983 to 60 today.
People with Down syndrome attend school, work, participate in decisions that affect them, have meaningful relationships, vote, and contribute to society in many wonderful ways.

All people with Down syndrome experience cognitive delays, but the effect is usually mild to moderate and is not indicative of the many strengths and talents that each individual possesses.

Early intervention, continuing quality educational programs, a stimulating home environment, good health care, and positive support from family, friends, and the community enable people with Down syndrome to lead fulfilling and productive lives.

03/06/2026

March is National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month. This campaign seeks to raise awareness about the inclusion of people with developmental disabilities in all areas of community life, as well as awareness to the barriers that people with disabilities still sometimes face in connecting to the communities in which they live.
Developmental disabilities include disabilities such as cerebral palsy, autism, muscular dystrophy, Down syndrome, or fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, and affect a person's growth and/or cognition. The figures show that about 1 in 6 children are identified to have some type of developmental disability. But people shouldn’t have to be worried or alarmed if someone has a developmental disability. They can usually live typical lives as long as they have the proper support.
The Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month shines a spotlight on the disabled community and demonstrates how people with developmental disabilities live normal lives. In return, the public can learn how to help people with developmental disabilities achieve their dreams.

Whether it is a person who uses a wheelchair that you see in the grocery store, a child in their class that has Autism, or a sibling with ADHD your child has someone in their life that has a disability that they might have questions about. Talking openly and honestly about disability with your kids....

02/20/2026

Please help us welcome Mandi Crooks, SLP, to the team. Mandi will be working in Northwest Missouri.

02/19/2026

Please help us welcome Leslie Boice to the team! Leslie is an OT who will be serving in Cass County.

02/19/2026

Missouri families! Free assistance!

02/10/2026

February is Black History Month. This is an interesting and important fact about black disability history. Harriet Tubman was one of the most courageous and determined freedom fighters in U.S. history. When people remember her, they think about the Underground Railroad and how she made thirteen recorded trips back into Maryland’s treacherous slave territory to free 60-70 enslaved people and later freed nearly 800 others in South Carolina. However, most people do not know that when Tubman was a child, an overseer hit her in the head with a heavy weight after she refused to restrain a field hand who had left his plantation without permission. She suffered severe trauma from the event. She became visually impaired and experienced seizures for the rest of her life. Unfortunately, Tubman’s experience of violence occurred daily, which made her brain injury worse. By the late 1890s, the pain in her head had affected her ability to sleep. She found a doctor in Boston willing to operate on her brain. She chose not to receive anesthesia while the doctor cut open her skull and performed the surgery — something she had seen soldiers do during the Civil War when they suffered pain on the battlefield. It is unclear whether the surgery improved her condition.