Who We Serve
“We can make a difference. People in wheelchairs can make a difference. We can do anything that we can set our hearts and minds to. We can do anything. Accomplish anything. Be anything. And I wouldn’t want our disabilities to stop us from being who we want to be.”
NAC serves children who are living in poverty, have experienced neglect, physical and/or sexual abuse, and who have profound and chronic medical conditions ranging from terminal diagnoses such as Neuroblastoma, to physical disabilities including muscular dystrophy, and rare diagnoses such as Oto Palatio Digital Syndrome. Some of the children have special medical needs because of abuse or neglect. Among our children, some have suffered severe burns, broken bones, shaken baby syndrome, and/or traumatic brain injury as a result of abuse. More than 50% of NAC children have multiple medical diagnoses and approximately 35% use wheelchairs. NAC also provides direct services to the parents and siblings of these children.
NAC's children have fragile or chaotic home lives. Their families grapple with poverty and other socio-economic problems, including homelessness or sub-standard housing, domestic violence, poverty, substance abuse, unemployment, immigration and language barriers, parental illness, and illiteracy. In approximately three quarters of NAC families, there are mental health needs in addition to special medical needs.
NAC children and families live in all five boroughs of New York City and surrounding counties.
The special medical needs of NAC children may include but are not limited to the following:
- Autism
- Cerebral palsy
- Spina bifida
- Osteogenesis imperfecta (brittle bone disease)
- Heart disease
- Diabetes
- Asthma
- Sickle cell anemia
- Cancer
- HIV/AIDS
- Developmental disabilities
- Lissencephaly
- Poland's syndrome
- Microcephaly
- Hydrocephaly
- DiGeorge's syndrome
- Munchausen's by proxy
- Children dependent on feeding tubes and/or wheelchairs
- Oxygen dependent children
- Children with tracheostomies
Definition
Medically Fragile: a designation for a child with a profound disability and/or chronic medical condition, which may become unstable and change abruptly, resulting in a life-threatening situation.
Get Involved
A little help goes a long way. School supplies, house warming baskets, a new book to read...all make a world of difference to NAC children and families.