Project Background Information
Prenatal alcohol exposure is a leading, preventable cause of birth defects and developmental disabilities. Health and allied health care providers need information and strategies to identify and serve women at risk of having an alcohol-exposed pregnancy; as well as identify, diagnose and treat individuals affected by fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) and other fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD).

In 1999, Congress directed the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to convene the National Task Force on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Effect, coordinated and managed by the FAS Prevention Team in CDC's National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD). The Task Force recommended several approaches to enhance FASD prevention, identification, and treatment efforts. One of these recommendations was the development of programs to educate health care professionals about prenatal alcohol–related disorders.

The Great Lakes FASD Regional Training Center (GLFRTC) addresses this identified need by providing training for medical and allied health professionals and students throughout the Great Lakes region and beyond on the prevention, identification, and treatment (management) of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). The project is funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and housed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, School of Medicine and Public Health. The project targets the states of Hawaii, Indiana, Minnesota, North Carolina, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin.


For More Information
Click here to download our brochure.
Call toll-free 1-800-752-3157
Email: fasd.trainingcenter@fammed.wisc.edu



Staff Photo (from left to right): Project Medical Director David Wargowski, MD; Project Education Director Kristi Obmascher; Project Director Georgiana Wilton, PhD; Project Evaluator Barbara Vardalas, MA; Project Data Manager, Angela Cappas-Awes.



Project Activities
FASD Training: Check out our range of in person and e-learning training opportunities addressing the biopsychosocial issues related to fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). Training is offered across the Great Lakes region and beyond; and provides current science-based information and shares resources and strategies. Continuing education units (CEUs) from UW-Madison are available for many trainings.

FASD Materials: Check out our FASD-related informational and educational materials for health and human services providers, the general public, and others.

FASD Awareness: Learn more about our ongoing efforts to raise awareness about FASD, including sponsoring events each year to recognize the international September 9th FASD Awareness Day.