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When a family member has a chronic condition, the challenges of navigating complex healthcare and educational systems can be overwhelming. Natalie Taylor knows better than most how much more difficult this system is for Army families, who are faced with moving hundreds of miles every few years when Soldiers are assigned to new duty stations.
Taylor is the manager of the Exceptional Family Member Program at Redstone Arsenal, a Department of the Army program that provides Army families with the assistance they need to help manage family members’ medical and educational needs.
“If a Soldier has a family member that has a medical need or an educational need, then they are required to sign up in the program primarily so that when they get PCS (Permanent Change of Station) orders to the next installation, we have already kind of coordinated to know that they can go to that next installation and services can be met,” Taylor said. Those family members include Soldiers’ spouses and children.
EFMP serves Army families who have “physical, emotional, developmental or intellectual” disorders, according to myarmyonesource.com. These needs may include the following: Autism Spectrum Disorder; mental health conditions; diabetes; multiple sclerosis; educational needs requiring Individualized Education Programs or other interventions; and myriad other conditions that require treatment from a specialist or other interventions. It is a mandatory enrollment program, which means as soon as a need has been identified, the Soldier and their family is enrolled and eligible to receive EFMP benefits.
As program manager, Taylor’s days consist of meeting with families and helping them figure out how to advocate for their family members who need extra attention. She coordinates support groups as they are needed, connects families to resources like a local autism support group called Making Connections, helps parents navigate the education system to ensure their children are receiving adequate intervention, and more.
EFMP also provides resources like a respite care program, in which qualifying families can receive up to 25 hours of free child care each month.
“That’s providing a break for a parent that has a special needs child, that is, you have complex medical issues,” Taylor said. “The Department of the Army has already paid for respite care by a vetted provider that would care for your child and your home while you get a break.”
Taylor also does individualized intake with EFMP families as they come into Redstone Arsenal’s program, ensuring that each family’s specific needs can be met. This requires coordination between Taylor and Fox Army Health Center, as new referrals to EFMP typically originate with the family member’s medical provider. About 175 Army family members on Redstone Arsenal are enrolled with EFMP.
After spending two decades as EFMP manager, there is little question about Taylor’s favorite part of the job: “It’s a lot of fun to meet the kids,” she said. “It’s a lot of fun to connect with families that way and establish a rapport with them, and that’s my whole goal, so that they feel comfortable reaching out to ask any questions. If it’s not even something related to EFMP, or if they’re worried about something, I just want to be able to find a resource or someone to help them.”
For more information about EFMP at Army Community Service, visit redstone.armymwr.com/programs/efmp or call Taylor at 876-5397.
| Date Taken: | 05.26.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 07.02.2021 11:27 |
| Story ID: | 399453 |
| Location: | HUNTSVILLE , AL, US |
| Web Views: | 34 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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