Early relational health (ERH) is not a new field, but an enhanced focus on knowledge from infant and early childhood mental health (IECMH), neurodevelopment, and related fields. ERH brings attention to the centrality of safe, stable, and nurturing relationships and resilient communities as drivers for current and future health and well-being of…

Consultation in infant mental health is a relationship-based approach to building reflective capacity in professionals who work with young children. Consultants support various professionals such as child care and medical providers with meeting the social, emotional, and developmental needs of infants and children. This article describes a…

Based on case studies in three states (CO, RI, and TX), this brief examines promising strategies to address the developmental and mental health needs of infants and toddlers involved in Child Welfare (CW). Due to family adversities, trauma, maltreatment, and separation from primary caregivers, these infants and toddlers are at substantial risk of…

Infants and toddlers account for a disproportionate percentage of children diagnosed with cancer. These young children and their families benefit when infant and early childhood mental health is recognized as vital and integrated with medical treatment. Such interventions are beneficial for supporting families in coping when cancer is the only…

Building professional relationships and collaboration are key components to providing effective quality services to infants, toddlers and families involved in the child welfare system. However, it seems many programs and systems continue to work independently of each other, perhaps to the detriment of our most vulnerable children and families.…

This article spotlights Colorado and Rhode Island's collaboration efforts on the Keeping Children and Families Safe Act (PL 108-36, 2003), which reauthorized the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA, 2018) and Part C of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 2018). These two key pieces of federal legislation require…

New Mexico is home to nearly 70,000 infants and toddlers. New Mexico families are the state's strongest asset, yet current policies aren't meeting their needs. Children's growth and development are shaped by early life experiences. Good health, secure and stable families, and positive early learning environments foster children's physical,…

When combined with high quality early care and education, comprehensive services are intended to support families in their role as caregivers and foster the health and well-being of children. Connecting children and families to these services is a foundational feature of the Head Start and Early Head Start (EHS) models. Partnerships between EHS…

How do we screen all families in a population at a single time point, identify family-specific risks, and connect each family with evidence-based community resources that can help them overcome those risks--an approach known as targeted universalism? In this article, Kenneth A. Dodge and W. Benjamin Goodman describe Family Connects, a program…

In 2014, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) granted funds to establish Early Head Start-Child Care Partnerships (EHS-CCPs) to expand families' access to high-quality child care. Through these partnerships, Early Head Start grantees have worked with center-based and family child care providers to implement Head Start Program…

Pregnant women and young children who experience toxic stress are at risk for negative health outcomes. The "medical home" is seen as a place to address toxic stress by promoting healthy relationships, but Spanish-speaking Latino families face challenges accessing the medical home while simultaneously confronting unique stressors. This…

While some people feel that an infant who will never see or hear can bring only heartache, Orion's family knew differently. Deafblindness is not just about the absence of sight and sound. It is so much more than the sum of these two parts. What one learns from experiencing the collaboration between a teacher of the deaf and a teacher of the…

This article describes an infant and early childhood mental health-informed therapeutic visitation program that offers clinical support, systems-level advocacy, and developmentally appropriate guidance to families navigating the child welfare and family court systems. The program offers treatment, permanency, and placement planning for infants,…

Research shows relationships fuel early brain development and provide the foundation for lifelong health and success. Yet we also know that parenting a very young child places enormous physical and emotional demands on adults. Some families may not have what they need, or know where to turn for support if they want it, even when it is within reach…

This National Services Snapshot summarizes key data on demographics and services for children from birth to age five and pregnant women served by Head Start, Early Head Start, and Migrant and Seasonal Head Start programs. The data in this Snapshot is a subset of the annual Program Information Report (PIR) submission to the Office of Head Start.…