Connecting Families to Community Resources

1. Help Me Grow Connecting Families to Community Resources

2. Key Points • Help Me Grow: A resource that will save you time • Developmental Surveillance: How it can be ongoing, consistent and valid • Parent Questionnaires: Two tools to help identify developmental/behavioral concerns, put parents at ease & address their concerns

3. What is Help Me Grow? • Serves children (birth through 5) who are at risk for behavioral and developmental delays and who do not qualify for Birth to Three Services What Help Me Grow Does • Researches resources and services availableusing Child Development Community Liaisons • Connects families to appropriate services

5. Why Help Me Grow? • Children with developmental/behavioral problems are eluding early detection • Programsexist to help at-risk children • Children and their families benefit from a coordinated, state-wide system of early detection and intervention for children at risk • Child health providers face a challengein connecting at-risk children with needed services

6. Consider this Scenario…. • Ms. Smith, a young single parent, brings her 3-year-old son “CJ” to you for a well child visit. • You ask if she has any concerns about development. She says no. You complete the physical exam and begin to wrap up the visit. • You notice CJ is very active and barely speaks. • Ms. Smith is ready to leave, reaches for the doorknob and says……

7. “Oh, by the way….”

8. “CJ is driving me crazy, he never listens and has been kicked out of two child care centers…I’m at the end of my rope.” You are running behind…. What Do You Do?

9. Do the Concerns Represent: • A social-emotional problem? • A school problem? • A developmental delay? • A parenting issue? How Do You Help Connect Families to Resources/Services in Your Community?

10. Let’s Go Back to the Beginning • Ms. Smith approaches the registration desk • She is given a parent questionnaire that asks her to write down concerns • As you enter the exam room you quickly scan the protocol and note her concerns about behavior and child care Or you ask….

11. “Do you have any concerns about your child’s learning, development or behavior?”

12. How Can Help Me Grow Help? • Discuss Help Me Grow with parent • Provide “prescription pad” with information • Call 1-800-505-7000 and outline concerns • Telephone Care Coordinator takes information and calls parent

13. Who Should You Refer? • Developmental concerns • Addressing challenging behaviors • Parenting education • Family supports • Parent advocacy • Referral to other services (Husky)

14. Who Can Call? • Child Health Provider • Parent • Child Care Provider • Social Service Provider

15. How to Refer to Help Me Grow • Call the Child Development Infoline at1-800-505-7000 • Telephone Care Coordinators: • Triage calls • Are bilingual • Provide follow-up • Link to Child Development Community Liaisons

16. Child Development Community Liaison • Statewide • Identifies community resources • Gathers data on gaps & barriers • Community networking opportunities

17. Connecting CJ to Services The Child Development Community Liaison researches options for services • Parenting support groups for behavioral challenges • Support in the child care setting • Follow-up

18. 1 2 6 Parent Fills Out Form Well Child visit Doctor Gets Feedback Help Me Grow 3 5 4 Parent Connected to Resource Call 1-800-505-7000 Care Coordinator Links to CDL

19. The Challenge We know that early detection leads to early intervention which can prevent disabilities. But… How do child health providers find time to provide ongoing, consistent developmental surveillance to their patients?

20. What is Developmental Surveillance? • A flexible, continuous, longitudinal process. • Components: • Eliciting/attending to parents’ concerns • Obtaining a relevant developmental history • Skillfully observing children’s development • Sharing opinions with other professionals

21. Developmental SurveillanceTwo Tools • PEDS (Parents’ Evaluation of Developmental Status) • Ages & Stages Questionnaire

22. PEDS(Parents’ Evaluation of Developmental Status) • Parent report vs. parent recall • Takes only 2-5 minutes to complete • Written on 5th grade level • Identifies 74 to 80 percent of children with developmental disabilities • Can be used birth to 8 years of age • Standardized, reliable

23. PEDS Research • 11 percent of children need referrals for further evaluation • 26 percent of children need screening, developmental promotion and observation • 20 percent of children need mostly behavioral guidance • 43 percent of children need only routine monitoring

24. Ages & Stages Child Monitoring Program • Parent completes questionnaire • Helps parents understand and recognize developmental milestones • Statewide – Birth to 60 months • Results returned to child health provider • Identifies children “at risk” for developmental delays

25. Help Me Grow A Program of The Children’s Trust Fund • Partners: • Connecticut Birth to Three System • Preschool/Special Education • United Way of CT/Infoline • Support: • The Commonwealth Fund* • E.P.I.C. (Educating Practices in the Community) • Children’s Health & Development Institute • CT Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics * The Commonwealth Fund is a New York City-based private, independent foundation. The views presented herein are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of The Commonwealth Fund, it's directors, officers, or staff.

26. A Resource for You • Call Help Me Grow • Consider using the PEDS/ASQ at well child visits Thank you for your time! Please remember to fill out the presentation evaluation form.