DULCE Quarterly Learning Collaborative Meeting

This month, CTC-RI hosted our quarterly DULCE Learning Collaborative with approximately 31 participants. This meeting focused on sharing the progress made from the four participating practices: Blackstone Valley Community Health Center, Tri-County, Care New England Family Care Center, and Hasbro.  Additionally, Michelle Hirst, MSW, Supervisor, Healthy Families America, Children’s Friend shared how family visiting can support families by providing parenting support, resources including health insurance, childcare, lead poisoning prevention, a dental home, a medical home, and WIC, and provided tips to support a baby's growth and development. Michelle Hirst also spoke to the  ongoing partnership between  Children’s Friend with Care New England Family Care Center and how their group sessions have helped families care for their newborns and address issues of isolation.

During the meeting, CHW/family specialists from each organization shared how they support their families during graduation and “warm hand-off” at six months including checklists, providing gift cards for successful completion of DULCE and even graduation certificates. Finally, teams heard from Susan Orban, LICSW, Director, Washington County Coalition for Children as she presented on "The Greatest 8", a virtual tool used to support mental health and wellbeing by ensuring that parents, caregivers and practitioners have the training and resources that they need to promote social-emotional competence in children ages 0-8. See the slides for this meeting here.

Thank you to the funders that are supporting this pilot program including Congressional Direct Spend, UnitedHealthcare, RIDOH, EOHHS and Tufts Health Plan.