Healthy AthletesSpecial Olympics Arkansas currently offers Healthy Athletes clinics year-round. The largest event takes place at Summer Games each year. The event hosts seven disciplines and provides 1,632 screenings. A variety of events host one or two disciplines throughout the year providing 100-300 screenings. In an effort to extend our reach in Arkansas with Healthy Athletes, we have added a purely educational extension of our clinics, Live Healthy Education Fairs.
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There are 9 Healthy Athletes disciplines offered by Special Olympics Arkansas.
Each athlete that attends Healthy Athletes receives free health screenings, education, and referrals for follow-up care.
Each athlete that attends Healthy Athletes receives free health screenings, education, and referrals for follow-up care.
Use the arrow below to view the details about all 9 disciplines.
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Fun FitnessComprehensive, cooperative and educational, FUNfitness is the physical therapy component of Healthy Athletes® that Special Olympics athletes describe as “just plain fun”. Designed to assess and improve an athlete’s flexibility, functional strength, aerobic capacity and balance, volunteer physical therapists, assistants, and students assess the flexibility and functional strength of Special Olympics Athletes’ muscles, as well as overall balance at FUNfitness screenings.
The FUNfitness curriculum was developed for Special Olympics Healthy Athletes by the American Physical Therapy Association. Professional volunteers (OTs, PTs, students) interested in assisting at FUNfitness events please contact: Amber Robinson Arkansas Clinical Director Robin Dyer, M.S., P.T. |
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Health PromotionHealth Promotion Programs validate the success of the diverse approaches offered, along with positive psychosocial and health benefits:
Improved perceived health; Reduction in body weight;
Arkansas Clinical Directors Warren Newman Duston Morris, PhD, MS, CHES, CHC |
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Healthy HearingAs the audiological component of Healthy Athletes®, Healthy Hearing was created to assess the hearing of athletes using multiple screening methods such as pure tone testing and tympanometry. In some cases, like at the 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games, healthy Hearing volunteers are able to provide free hearing aids that immediately restore hearing for athletes, thanks to corporate donations.
Professional volunteers (audiologists, students) interested in assisting at Healthy Hearing events please contact: Amber Robinson Arkansas Clinical Directors Jan Stroud, Au.D, CCC-A |
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Opening EyesWith eyes wide open to the needs of people with intellectual disabilities, Special Olympics – Lions Clubs International Opening Eyes®, was created to provide free vision screening for Special Olympics athletes.
Opening Eyes also works to educate athletes, parents and coaches about the importance of regular eye care, and enlightens and alters the attitudes of eye care professionals about the vision care needs of people with intellectual disabilities. Professionals can also earn continuing education credits. Arkansas Clinical Directors Airiell Schwab, O.D. |
Special Smiles Sponsor:
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Special SmilesSpecial Smiles has demonstrated remarkable success in its mission to increase access to dental care for Special Olympics athletes, and to all people with intellectual disabilities. Today, Special Smiles is considered a leading advocate on standards for care an equality-of-care issues.
The scope of Special Smiles has been expanded to include:
Arkansas Clinical Directors Jennifer Garner, RDH Megan Inclan, DDS , MS |
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Fit Feet
Fit Feet helps Special Olympics athletes step lively on the playing field, and in everyday life. Many athletes suffer from foot and ankle pain, or deformities that impair their performance. In fact, up to 50 percent of Special Olympics athletes experience one or more preventable or treatable foot conditions that can affect their sports participation. Often, these individuals are not fitted with the best shoes and socks for their particular sport. To alleviate these problems, volunteer podiatrists work with athletes to evaluate problems of the feet, ankles and lower extremity biomechanics. Arkansas Clinical Director Jame Pierce, DPM Joseph M. LaCava, DPM |
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MedFest
The goals of MedFest include: offer a free sports physical and other health examination services to people with intellectual disabilities, recruit new athletes to Special Olympics, foster new partnerships between Special Olympics and the community, and provide physicians, nurses and other health care providers with training and specialized experience in caring for people with intellectual disabilities. Arkansas Clinical Directors Leonie Declerk, DNP, APRN, FNP-BC Teresa Whited, DNP, APRN, CPNP-PC Mario Hofheinz, PA-C Tara Almand, DPN, APRN |
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Strong Minds
Strong Minds is an interactive learning activity focused on developing adaptive coping skills. Competition provides a natural opportunity to develop active strategies for maintaining emotional wellness under stress, such as: thinking positive thoughts, releasing stress and connecting with others. Arkansas Clinical Directors Jamie Ables, LCSW Danielle Bell, M.D. |
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Healthy Young Athletes
Healthy Young Athletes is a holistic pediatric screening offered to children 2 – 7 years old, with and without Intellectual Disabilities, as an initial offering by Healthy Athletes. The screening can be implemented across the three Young Athletes implementation models—school, community, and home—as well as in conjunction with large-scale Healthy Athletes events. The screening is intended to complement a child’s primary care and provides an additional review of the child’s health and development. It is therefore paired with a comprehensive referral and community support strategy that links families with local providers, community services, and education resources for follow-up and continued support. It also serves as an educational experience to increase health and development knowledge amongst parents and caregivers. This is achieved by identifying medical, developmental, and behavioral concerns that parents and caregivers may have about their child and directing them to the appropriate resources. Arkansas Clinical Director Sarah Clark, OT |
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It’s our goal to screen and educate as many athletes as possible throughout the year. |
Follow-Up CareOftentimes, the Healthy Athletes medical screener suggests that the athlete see his/her regular doctor or a dentist, podiatrist (foot doctor), audiologist (hearing specialist), ophthalmologist (eye doctor), for reasons outlined on the Report Card that is given to the athlete at the screening.
To assist you with finding a health provider that lives near you, we have created a Resource Directory for each of the 6 disciplines. Medical follow-up with the right person will help ensure that your athlete gets the right care, and is able to perform their very best both on and off the playing field. |
Additional Resources
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ARKids First health insurance provides two coverage options for more than 70,000 Arkansas children who otherwise might have gone without. ARKids A is Medicaid for children and offers low-income families a comprehensive package of benefits. ARKids B provides coverage for families with higher incomes. Visit their website for more information, eligibility, and to apply online.
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Arkansas Foundation for Medical Care offer a wide range of services related to health care quality, utilization and delivery, as well as public health and awareness. Our clients include Medicare, Arkansas Medicaid, Mississippi Medicaid, Alabama Medicaid and others.
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Live Healthy Education Fairs
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Live Healthy Education Fairs are an extension of the Healthy Athletes clinics offered by Special Olympics Arkansas. Different from the screenings at the Healthy Athletes clinics, live healthy education fairs are purely informative hands on training segment of healthy athletes.
Despite a mistaken belief that people with intellectual disabilities receive the same or better health care than others, they typically receive sub-standard care or virtually no health care at all. In an effort to expand the reach with Healthy Athletes, Special Olympics Arkansas launched live healthy education fairs in 2014. Each live healthy fair contains at least 2 educational topics for athletes and caregivers to learn about as they move through the fair. Educational topics may include: Nutrition, Hand Washing, Sun Safety, Dental, Hydration, Bone Health, Smoke Cessation, and Fitness. To find out if a Live Healthy Education Fair is happening in your area, visit our Health Hub or contact Amber Robinson for more information. |
Goal 1
Increase knowledge of Health and Wellness for Special Olympics Arkansas community Goal 2
Expand Healthy Athletes reach to Area and Regional activities. goal 3
Create a network of volunteers throughout the health care field. Thank you to our Live Healthy Education Fair Partners!
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If you are a healthcare professional interested in getting involved with any of our Healthy Athletes clinics or programs, please reach out to Amber Robinson.
