Chronic Care for Kids in Colorado Shouldn’t Be a Full-Time Job for Parents
If your child has asthma, diabetes, or another long-term condition, you probably know the feeling: the care is only part of the work. The rest is scheduling, referrals, forms, phone calls, and explaining your child’s history again to someone new.
You’re far from alone. Nearly one in five children and youth in Colorado has special health care needs, such as autism, behavioral disorders, or chronic conditions. A statewide policy report put the number at an estimated 341,000 children and youth. At Midash Health, we provide chronic condition management for babies, newborns, children, and adolescents, built around what families in Colorado tell us they need most.
What Colorado Families Are Up Against
Colorado has invested in care coordination, but families still describe a system that is hard to navigate.
Fragmented care. The services and support that families receive are often fragmented, and a Colorado Health Institute report found that families of children with special needs often work across medical care, behavioral health, education, and human services, with another form or referral at every turn. A local landscape scan in Douglas County heard similar themes, describing care as fragmented and disconnected, with little coordination between providers and organizations.
Coordination that doesn’t always reach the child. According to a Colorado evaluation, children with special health care needs were significantly less likely to receive effective care coordination than other children. In Medicaid, regional entities are paid to provide members with short term, episodic, care coordination services, which can leave families without steady support between crises.
Barriers beyond the clinic. Local caregivers also pointed to lack of awareness about available services and supports, transportation barriers, and language and cultural barriers. And according to Colorado Health Institute, families of color, with low incomes, and/or living in rural areas face additional systemic hurdles in getting the care they need.
None of this reflects a lack of effort from parents. It reflects a system that too often asks families to hold everything together themselves.
Here is How We Respond At Midash Health
Our chronic condition management gives children ongoing, personalized support rather than occasional, disconnected contact. It rests on three commitments.
Education that makes families confident
When care is scattered, families end up piecing together information on their own. We make education a core part of care, helping parents and older children understand the condition, the reasons behind each part of the care plan, and what to do when something changes. For adolescents, that means building the knowledge to take on more responsibility for their own health over time.
This visit is your first interaction with pediatric care, setting the stage for ongoing health monitoring. It’s a chance to ask initial questions and begin feeling more confident about bringing your baby home.
Consistency that closes the gaps between visits
Short-term or episodic support leaves long stretches where families are on their own. Our approach emphasizes steady, reliable follow-through, with regular check-ins and clear care plans, so small concerns get attention before they become emergencies and families aren’t left to start over each time. You are the expert on your child. We build care plans with you, around your child’s school, activities, and family routines, and we work to keep the people involved in your child’s care on the same page, so you aren’t the only link between them.
The 3-5 Day Visit: The First Outing
Support From Birth Through Adolescence
A newborn, a school-aged child, and a teenager need very different things, and conditions like asthma and diabetes change as children grow. Midash supports children across that full range, with plans tailored to the individual child rather than a one-size-fits-all template, along with other long-term health needs.
You Shouldn’t Have to Navigate This Alone
Coordinating a child’s chronic care can feel like a second job. Our goal is to take on more of that weight, with education, consistency, and partnership that stay with your family over time.
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