Child First® (CF) is a two-generation model that works with young children and their families, providing intensive, home-based mental health services.
With CF, families work alongside a Mental Health Clinician and Family Support Partner with the goal to promote healing for the family.
Addressing mental health and healing trauma for
children and families.
Program Approach
Child First is a national, evidence-based, two-generation model that works with young children and families, providing intensive, home-based services.
When young children grow up in environments where there is violence, neglect, mental illness, or substance abuse, the stress can be toxic to their developing brains. But, we can intervene to prevent this damage. Scientific research demonstrates that we can make a difference if we (1) work to connect families to needed community-based services to decrease stress, and (2) build strong, loving, caregiver-child relationships that protect and heal the brain from trauma and stress.
Child First helps families, and the providers who support them, build strong, nurturing relationships that heal and protect young children from the devastating impact of trauma and chronic stress.
Child First works with caregivers and young children together in their homes because that provides the best opportunity to strengthen families.
Each family works alongside a two-person team within the home. The team consists of a Mental Health Clinician with experience in early childhood development, and a Family Support Partner who works with the entire family on sources of stress, and to connect them with resources. The program is unique because it combines two complementary approaches to healing from trauma and adversity: It directly decreases the stressors experienced by the family by connecting them to needed services and supports, and it also facilitates a nurturing, responsive caregiver-child relationship.
Program Map
Results
CHILD
- 78% showed improvement in their social skills.
- 60% showed improvement in their communication skills.
- 44% showed improvement in problem behaviors.
CAREGIVERS
- 74% showed improvement in their trauma symptoms.
- 50% showed improvement in their parenting stress.
- 62% showed improvement in their depressive symptoms.
RELATIONSHIP
- 47% of caregiver-child pairs showed improvements in their relationships.
