An important goal of early childhood programs is to promote every child’s development (which includes cognitive, physical, and social and emotional development). Our members promote nurturing environments and foundational relationships for all children, building a healthy future through emotional, cognitive, and social growth. The infant and early childhood mental health field is multi-disciplinary. Infant and early childhood mental health is defined within the context of family, community, and culture. The Pyramid Plus Approach, created by the Colorado Center for Social Emotional Competence and Inclusion, provides education and direction on practices in early childhood education that support children’s social emotional development.
- Early childhood mental health services are of paramount importance due to their role in helping to provide a head start for lifelong well-being.
- ABCD helps promote guidelines for screenings in primary care settings and works to ensure that once children with potential delays are identified, they are quickly and successfully connected with the assessments and services they need.
- These systems face numerous obstacles to collaboration, including differences in funding structures, policies, communication methods, and health record systems.
- This is a practitioner who has a close relationship with their key children and works in close partnership with their parents and carers.
This paper focuses specifically on community-based programs in California supporting infants, toddlers, and preschoolers’ social-emotional health, as well as their goals, service models, and funding sources. Environmental stressors such as war, natural disasters and family dislocation also place infants and young children at risk of mental health difficulties, especially if the primary caregiver is rendered less emotionally available by the same stressor (Lyons-Ruth et al., 2017). Oppose cuts to Medicaid to ensure babies and those who care for them can access the mental health services they need; and invest in early childhood mental health funding streams that, in partnership with Medicaid, ensure young children receive needed services. Instead, it gives caregivers tools to support children’s healthy social and emotional development. IECMH is a multidisciplinary field, inclusive of persons from many professional, cultural and community backgrounds, and systems, focusing on enhancing the emotional and social competence of infants, toddlers, and preschool-aged children and their caregivers, through healthy relationships and early experiences. Anyone who touches the lives of babies, young children and their families can contribute to promoting infant and early childhood mental health.
Good mental health in infancy and early childhood refers to healthy social and emotional development. This makes the perinatal, infant and early childhood period a crucial window for intervention, with the goal of promoting good mental health for infants and young children (Robinson et al., 2008). Interventions that aim to improve parent mental health during this period are also considered, given that parental mental health has been found to be a risk factor for poor outcomes in infants and children, including emotional and conduct problems later in life (Bauer et al., 2016). An understanding of the evidence around prevention and intervention for parental anxiety and depression is vital to the process of prevention of early mental health disorders in infants and young children. The main goal of this program is to help children do well by addressing their behavioral health care needs, so they are ready for school and later academic success. What makes IECMHC unique is that it focuses on helping adult caregivers support children’s social and emotional growth.
Supporting Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health & Social-Emotional Learning
Significant improvements were reported in social skills and problem behaviors after one year, with additional gains for children receiving a second year of services. Three consultants spent two days per week in each preschool, offering a curriculum (Second Step) to all children, consultation to teachers, and play therapy to children identified as needing additional supports. Children in both groups were screened with a behavior rating scale, and children at intervention centers who screened positive received child-focused consultation. An evaluation of TOTS based on pre- and post-consultation teacher reports for 33 children found significant improvements in positive behaviors and behavior problems. While 40 percent of program directors reported expelling a child in the year prior to the receipt of consultation services, only 20 percent reported expelling a child since receiving the consultation services.
InBrief: Early Childhood Mental Health
Mental health matters for the growth and maturity of the brain and body and for the social and emotional development of a person — now and for the whole lifetime. An infant, toddler and young child’s mental health is every part as important as their physical health. Based on the training and technical assistance provided, the early childhood system within North Carolina is more cohesive, the providers are more collaborative, and the children and families are better served. Based on the concerns of the family and Cecelia’s development, the ECI providers and parents decided to focus on building Cecilia’s communication skills, helping Mr. and Mrs. Marks develop positive parenting skills, and promoting co-regulation.
Evidence-based practices (EBPs) are a key 88 ways to get mental health support part of IECMH treatment. The teacher shared these ideas with Ashley’s parents so they could practice at home and at the local playground. Family members are a child’s first and most important teachers.