Helpful Websites

Birth Defect Research for Children — Organization provides comprehensive fact sheets about birth defects, parent-to-parent matching opportunities and information resources. Maintains the National Birth Defect Registry. 

UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh's Child Health Library — Provides information about childhood injuries, diseases, developmental issues and treatment options with links to additional related online resources.

Children's Disabilities Information — Web site offers families, service providers, and other interested individuals information about advocacy, education, employment, health, housing, recreation, technical assistance, and transportation covering a broad array of developmental, physical, and emotional disabilities. Features national calendar of events, children's page, as well as national, state, and local resources.

Move United — Information about Move United events and its nationwide sports rehabilitation programs open to anyone with a permanent physical disability. Activities include winter skiing, water sports, summer and winter competitions, fitness and special sports events. Participants include those with visual impairments, amputations, spinal cord injury, dwarfism, multiple sclerosis, head injury, cerebral palsy, and other neuromuscular and orthopedic conditions.

Easterseals — Provides services (including medical rehabilitation, job training and employment, inclusive child care, adult day services, and recreation) to help children and adults with disabilities gain greater independence; 400 centers nationwide.

Family Friendly Fun and Special Needs Resources — Information to enhance the quality and enjoyment of family life with special needs children. This is a good example of many family-oriented sites which are maintained in specialized web-rings by the parents of special needs children. Most offer personal stories about their child’s illness, plus links of interest – these links can be particularly helpful to the parents of children with similar diseases/disabilities.

The Washington State Fathers Network — Support and information (available in English and Spanish) of interest to fathers raising children with special health care needs and developmental disabilities.

Internet Resources for Special Children (IRSC) — Information for parents, family members, caregivers, friends, educators, and medical professionals relating to the needs of children with disABILITIES. Links to facts about specific disorders, products, legal, educational and daily living issues, support groups and additional resources.

KidsHealth — Well-organized, easy-to-use site features a wide range of health and wellness information for parents, teens and kids. Some helpful topics include: dealing with feelings, kids' health problems, financial management during a medical crisis, caring for a child dependent on medical technology, preparing a child for a hospital visit/surgery, as well as a look at basic medical tests/exams.

March of Dimes — National organization seeks to reduce infant mortality and the incidence of birth defects. Web site features downloadable, easy-to-understand fact sheets about specific birth defects; also access to its Resource Center, a toll-free service providing information and referral help from trained professionals concerning: birth defects, pregnancy, genetics, newborn care, etc.

NOAH: New York Online Access to Health — Unique collection of state, local and federal resources selected with consumers in mind. Searchers may select from a list of health topics which are then narrowed to include definitions, care and treatment, and lists of information resources. Many bilingual resources.

Our-Kids — Web site supporting the Our-Kids e-mail list, a "family” of more than 800 parents, caregivers and others working with children with physical and/or mental disabilities and delays.

Parents Helping Parents — Dedicated to meeting children's special needs through parents helping parents. Special features include: baby gift program, mentor parenting, support groups, community links and calendars, and an equipment exchange of adapted devices, durable medical equipment and other useful tools to enrich and/or enhance life for children with special needs.