The Child Health Liaison Course in Boulder County

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The Child Health Liaison Course in Boulder
County
Presented by Sarah Scully, MPH Boulder County
Public Health 303-413-7502 sscully_at_co.boulder.co.u
s
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Child Health Promotion Program

• Child Health Liaison Program
• Child Care Health Consultant Training and Support
• Family Child Care Health and Safety Project
• Health Inspections/Playground Inspections
• Health Screening
• Clean Hands Program
• Immunizations/Health Records- Audits

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Child Health Liaison (CHL)

• Health Advocate Training Program
• One staff person from each center or home
• Works closely with the child care health
  consultant (CCHC)

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CHL Program Goals

• Improve quality
• Increase practices that reduce the spread of
  communicable illness among children and staff
• Reduce environmental hazards

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CHL Program Goals

• Increase access to primary care, mental health
  and social services for children and families
• Improve the early identification of children with
  special needs
• improve immunizations rates

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CHL Program Goals

• Improve the health promotion knowledge and skills
  of child care staff

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CHL, CCHC and Center Director collaborate to

• Assess health and safety needs of the families,
  staff and child care environment
• Facilitate education and training
• Provide referrals to community resources
• Develop policies and procedures

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CHL Job Description

• attend all sessions/mentor visits
• complete all assigned activities
• provide education to staff/families
• make environmental improvements
• regular meetings with director
• communication with CCHC

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Structure of CHL Program

• Training Program
• Forty-five hours
• 10 months
• Mentoring
• Monthly stipend
• Bonus
• 3 credit course

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Resources for Curriculum Development

• National Training Institute for Child Care Health
  Consultants (NTI)
• Head Start
• California Child Care Health Program
  http//www.ucsfchildcarehealth.org/

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Resources

• National Health and Safety Standards for Out of
  Home Care
• CDPHE Regulations and Materials
• Colorado Department of Human Services Regulations

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Program Evaluation

• Infant Toddler Environment Rating Scale
  (ITERS-R), ECERS-R, or FDCRS used pre and post
  program implementation
• Reliable, valid tools used nationwide to assess
  quality of group care for children

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Significant Results
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• Improved communication with staff and families
  regarding health and safety
• Continued professional development
• Ripple effect to other corporate sites
• More children with medical/dental homes and
  medical/dental insurance
• Improved immunization rates

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• Increased number of health care plans for
  children with special needs
• Improved health/safety policies
• Identification of children with vision, hearing,
  dental, and developmental concerns which leads to
  further evaluation and treatment.

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Improved hand washing/sanitation
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• Improved playground supervision
• More surfacing under and around equipment
• Safer equipment

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Challenges

• Addressing barriers to change
• time money space staff and program changes
  old facilities staff resistance
• Decreasing fear and apprehension
• Making substantial changes
• Evaluation tools

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Initial Funding

• Healthy Child Care Colorado
• Daniels Fund
• Caring for Colorado

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Current Program Costs

• Total Cost per center 2000
• 1500 stipends
• 500 resource materials supplies
• Plus staff time for training and mentoring

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Sustainability

• Relationships between CHLs and community
  resources
• Greater if accompanied by written policies
• Health and safety changes persist after CHL
  leaves the program
• CHL brings knowledge/skills to new center

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