Raising a child can be challenging, and parents can have lots of questions.
Is my child healthy? Why isn’t he walking or talking yet? How often should she see a doctor? Is there a local service with the help we need?
A new program called “Help Me Grow Marin” can help get answers to those questions, and many more.
Sponsored by First 5 Marin Children and Families Commission, Help Me Grow Marin connects parents, physicians and community providers with information, services and resources for young children, while building a strong support system as a whole.
Help Me Grow offers free, confidential consultations, professional advice and referrals to programs and intervention. Most importantly, there is follow up with personal support to ensure each child and family receives the help they need.
With Help Me Grow:
• Families can learn about community resources to support their child’s healthy growth, access a developmental or behavioral health screening to check their child’s developmental milestones, get linked to social or medical intervention or get resources for family needs.
• Caregivers can access activities and resources to support early learning and healthy habits. They can also get help with behavior issues, to keep children participating successfully in their current child care or preschool environments.
• Health care and community service providers can directly access screening tools and online resources, get referrals and recommendations, and arrange personalized care coordination for their patients or clients.
There are four core components of the Help Me Grow program:
• A centralized access point to assist families and providers in connecting children to appropriate community-based programs and services.
• Family and community outreach to facilitate provider networking and promote children’s healthy development as an optimal system of care for every child.
• Support for health care providers by promoting universal screening and early detection and intervention by medical professionals, and by offering free care coordination for patients.
• Systems change efforts that support evaluation, help identify gaps in services, bolster advocacy efforts and ensure quality improvements across the whole community of care for children.
One major focus of Help Me Grow is promoting developmental and behavioral health screening in the early years. Screenings are a vital tool in detecting developmental delays or disabilities in a young child. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends three screenings by the age of three — an important deadline to qualify for special support services if needed.
While the program will have an official launch later this month, professional Help Me Grow staff are already assisting parents and providers across the county.
Whether assisting a family with health insurance, finding parenting classes, providing information on child development, or making a referral to a medical clinic, Help Me Grow is a reliable and invaluable resource for everyone caring for kids in Marin County.
There is a wealth of resources for parents and providers on the Help Me Grow Marin website, and telephone assistance is also available from knowledgeable staff. Both are available in English or Spanish.
Learn more about Help Me Grow Marin at the official launch on Feb 25 from 10 a.m. to noon. Local, state and national presenters will speak at a free online event hosted by the Marin Communications Forum. Email Michelle@First5Marin.org to register.
Support Help Me Grow Marin’s goal of helping every child learn, grow and thrive.
Susanne Kreuzer is a child development specialist and the manager of Help Me Grow Marin. Info: Online at HelpMeGrowMarin.org, call 415-720-1283 or email info@helpmegrowmarin.org.
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