Dear Kindering friends and families:


I hope this letter finds you safe and healthy. Amid this ever-changing landscape due to the novel coronavirus, one thing remains constant: Kindering continues to support our children and families in innovative and effective ways. 

I am writing to make sure you know how we are continuing to fulfill our mission during this unprecedented time. You might be wondering what our needs look like as we adapt, and how you can help. 

Kindering Today
Last week, we shifted to 100% virtual services and are committed to continuing these from a distance until we hear it is safe to return to campus-based and in-person services. I have never been more grateful for our generous donors and past leaders who invested in us, allowing us to add tele-intervention as an option for families starting in 2016. Today, we are in a much better position to make this necessary shift to remote-only support and tele-intervention. In fact, we are in the process of working out details to support our early intervention colleagues across all of King and parts of Snohomish County.
“As parents to children with diverse needs, we all know the importance small steps can have in a long journey. Our family has embraced tele-intervention knowing that, at first, the steps may seem small but in the long run it keeps us moving forward and accomplishing great milestones. Thanks to Kindering staff, and tele-intervention, we will continue making gains and our family will continue to thrive.”
- Phil Banta, President, Kindering's Board of Directors
In the first 15 days of March, we successfully held 660 tele-intervention sessions ranging from speech, occupational, and physical therapies for children ages birth to 11 as well as family training and social work. These sessions occurred in partnership with caregivers who are being coached to support their child’s development. Having moved to fully remote services on March 12th, we know this number and types of supports will only grow in the coming weeks. 

Unprecedented Needs


Now we are compelled to take this to the next level, and overnight. We no longer can rely on also seeing children and families in person alongside tele-intervention. 
We must find a way to provide our families access to tele-intervention and specialized supports, especially families with significant resource needs. Over the past two weeks, many families have had to decline tele-intervention requests because of a lack of technology or internet connectivity.

  1. Computer/tablet systems. We hope to secure and loan100+ families systems to use during tele-intervention sessions.
     
  2. Internet hotspots. For some of our families, lack of access to high-speed internet is a barrier. We are working to secure 100+ 4G hotspots that can be loaned to families for therapy use.

  3. Technical assistance. We know that this is a new way to “see us” and our team is ready to provide coaching assistance to families. By helping families set up their remote therapy space and technology, we can support a positive experience for both child and caregiver. 

  4. Cell phones for select staff. Some of our families require cell-to-cell technology in order to stay connected. This is especially important for staff working with families experiencing housing instability. By offering specific staff cell phones, they will be able to connect to families and support them well.

  5. Staff training. Just this week, we have provided more than 1,000 hours in internal staff training on the best ways to offer tele-intervention.  The need for training will continue. 

  6. Denied insurance claims.  Early estimates show that we will see $20,000+ in monthly denied insurance claims for tele-intervention sessions. We are doing our best to work with insurance companies directly, but we expect this level of continued denials or greater. 

  7. Interpreters. Our costs for interpreters are expected to double because the state currently does not cover these expenses when provided via tele-health for those with Medicaid insurance.
Support Kindering's COVID-19 Special Projects

Special Thanks

I am deeply grateful to Kindering staff who have adapted with grace and commitment to continue to support our families while navigating the care of their own children and families at home.

Again, I want to thank previous leadership and donors for giving us the initial resources for tele-intervention technology and training to make this a reality. Without your help, our families would not be supported today.  

Finally, thank you to our families who are learning with us and remain steadfast partners in the face of uncertainty.

Thank you for considering an additional contribution to Kindering as we continue our mission to help our families thrive while on their unexpected journey of raising children with diverse developmental needs. 

I strongly believe that we will get through this public health crisis better together.   
In partnership, 
Lisa Greenwald, PhD
CEO, Kindering
Support Kindering Today
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