University of Chicago Children's Hospital launches Comdisco Center for Healthy Families

University of Chicago Children's Hospital Launches Comdisco Center for Healthy Families

June 28, 2000

The grand opening of the Comdisco Center for Healthy Families at the University of Chicago Children's Hospital will be held Wednesday, June 28, 2000, at 12:30 p.m. The Center, located at 5758 S. Maryland Avenue, Chicago, provides medically and socially at-risk newborns, children and families with support services to help achieve long-lasting improvement in their health and family lives.

The Comdisco Center for Healthy Families expects to enroll about 150 patients each year from the University of Chicago Children's Hospital in the program. Premature infants weighing less than 3.5 pounds and infants and children who have been identified as victims of child abuse or neglect are eligible for enrollment. The Center provides comprehensive, well-coordinated healthcare coupled with strong social and psychosocial support for the family. Most patients will be enrolled in the program until age three.

A team consisting of a pediatrician, neonatologist, nurse educator, social worker, child development specialist, occupational therapist, speech therapist, physical therapist, nutritionist, and speech and swallow specialist provide health care support for each patient.

Intensive case management, which includes home visitation, reminder calls for clinic appointments, individual educational sessions, and psychosocial support for the mother, is also provided to the patient and family.

Incentives, such as raffle prizes, transportation to clinic appointments, and birthday cards and gifts, will be used to encourage families to continue participation in the program.

"Our goal is to evaluate the best possible methods for obtaining good outcomes in children who are at high risk for growth and development problems," says Kwang-sun Lee, professor, departments of pediatrics, and section chief, neonatology, at the University of Chicago.

The Comdisco Center for Healthy Families was made possible by the generosity of underwriting sponsor Comdisco Foundation.

"The Comdisco Foundation is proud to support the University of Chicago Children's Hospital in creating a Center where newborns, children and families can flourish," said Nick Pontikes, president and CEO, Comdisco, Inc. "The Comdisco Center for Healthy Families will make a real difference in the lives of its patients. All of us at Comdisco are very excited to be part of this great effort."

About Comdisco, Inc. and The Comdisco Foundation
Comdisco, Inc., provides global technology services to help its customers maximize technology functionality, predictability and availability, while freeing them from the complexity of managing their technology. The Comdisco Foundation was established in 1994 in memory of Comdisco, Inc.'s founder, Kenneth N. Pontikes, in an effort to ensure that the communities in which the company does business share in its success.

About University of Chicago Children's Hospital
The University of Chicago Children's Hospital provides comprehensive, innovative medical care to children of all social and economic backgrounds and cares for children from the Chicago area, the Midwest and around the world. The hospital is dedicated to preserving the health of children through patient care, education, and research into the causes and cures of childhood diseases.