Infant mental health is a concept that all children will be emotionally healthy, equipped to learn, and nurtured to develop their full potential. Current research indicates that even before their first birthday, babies can suffer from clinical depression, traumatic stress disorder, and a variety of other mental health problems. Fortunately, there are approaches to preventing, assessing, and treating young children and their families.
Over the past year, key stakeholders from throughout Florida actively participated in a strategic planning process toward creating a system of infant mental health services. The plan provides a blueprint for building a system of mental health services for children birth to age five and their families in Florida through increasing public awareness, building workforce capacity, integrating infant mental services into current programs, utilizing evidenced-based interventions, securing funding for training and services, and advocating for policy changes needed to support the system of infant mental health services.
The Florida State University Center for Prevention and Early Intervention Policy coordinated the initiative to develop Florida’s Strategic Plan for Infant Mental Health in order to introduce a system of infant mental health services in Florida. A framework was conceptualized which delineated three levels of services. Using this framework of levels, the planning focused on five key areas needed to build an infant mental health system: best practices, training, funding, public awareness and policy, and eight strategic goals developed as a result of workgroup recommendations. Currently, we are working with Medicaid to fund components of the plan.
Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant in this session will be able to: 1. describe the importance of infant mental health services; 2. recognize how to integrate infant mental health concepts into existing social service programs; and, 3. discuss the financial and social benefits of emotional well being in families.
Keywords: Child and Adolescent Mental Health, Mental Health System
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None