Our Focus 

Our families continue to face multiple stressors. Our geographic area has seen increases in the percent of children in poverty, increase in the number of children receiving free or reduced school lunches, low birth weight infants, smoking prenatal women and an increase in children with a risk of obesity. Our families struggle with issues that limit their ability to make responsible health choices. Low paying jobs, increased unemployment, inadequate housing, insufficient educational opportunities, decreasing subsidies for child care, inaccessibility to health coverage, and an isolated rural environment contribute to a family’s ability to access care.

Family Connections assist children & families in receiving assistance and services which include;

Promote positive parent/child bonding and interaction.

Promote healthy childhood growth and development.

Medical provider for every child.

Immunizations on time for every child.

Well check visits scheduled and adhered to.

Assess needs and concerns of new parents.

Assist families in meeting challenges.

Financial Management  training.

Linkage to community resources.

Each year an estimated three million cases of suspected child abuse and neglect are reported to Child Protective Service (CPS) agencies, yet more than half of child abuse fatalities are typically unknown to CPS. Almost three children die from child abuse and neglect each day.

At the same time, according to a report released by the Carnegie Corporation of New York, “the earliest years of a child’s life are society’s most neglected age group, yet new evidence confirms that these years lay the foundation for all that follows.”

Programs that begin working with parent’s right after birth stand the greatest chance of reducing the risk of child abuse and neglect for several reasons:

1. New parents are eager and excited to learn about caring for their babies;

2. Positive parenting practices are supported before patterns are established

3. Most physical abuse and neglect occurs among children under the age of two

4. 44% of fatalities due to child maltreatment occur before the first birthday

5. Children need to be immunized from childhood disease during the first two   years of life

6. The most critical brain development occurs during the first few years of life.

"I think the more stressed parents are, the more they need modeling opportunities, to model on somebody who knows how to handle a baby, to talk to a baby, to play with a baby. [Then] a parent feels, hey, I know what I'm doing. We're seeing that she really has the passion, she just needs the support to bring it back to the surface."
- T. Berry Brazelton, M.D.      Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School

Priority Health Needs

Family Connections addresses the following priority health needs;

1) Decrease high risk pregnancies, fetal death, low birth weight, infant mortality, and racial and ethnic disparities in pregnancy outcomes.

2) Reduce barriers to access health care, mental health care and dental care for pregnant women, infants, and children, children with special health care needs, adolescents, women and families.

3) Build and strengthen systems of family support, education and involvement to empower families to improve health behaviors.

4) Decrease tobacco use among pregnant women.

5) To provide education regarding the potential hazards of alcohol and other drug exposures to an unborn baby.

6) To supply information and education about the health and social impact of substance abuse.

7) Reduce obesity in pregnant women and children.

Benchmarks for Success

Family Connections is an organization committed to excellence, with a clear mission and a passion for delivering outstanding results. Family Connections currently tracks and utilizes the following data as benchmarks to ensure that we are seeing to, and exceeding the needs of our clients.

1) 90% completion of monthly home visits.

2) 95% client retention rate.

3) 100% of children fully immunized.

4) 100% of families have a medical provider.

5) 100% of pregnant women receive assistance accessing primary medical provider and receive HIV, folic acid, pre-term labor, nutrition, infant feeding choices, and risky behavior education.

6) 100% of pregnant women receive an assessment of risk factors including smoking status and tobacco exposure.

7) 100% of families enrolled are assessed for smoking and provided with resources and referrals.

8) Reduce smoking in identified pregnant women by 45%, alcohol use by 60%, and street drug use by 80%.

9) Reduce smoking in the post-partum by 25%, alcohol use by 35%, and street drug use by 50%.

10) Minimum of 30 hours of in-service training per year for all staff.

11) Successful completion of Peer Review’s and Self Assessments.

12) Strict compliance with state requirements for documentation.