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CITYKIDS and the Let's Get Started Program provide single point access and coordinated intake for children with special needs and their families in Toronto. The program includes service navigators, outreach and training, and a multidisciplinary approach to support families and increase access to services.
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About CITYKIDS and the Let’s Get Started Program Maureen McDonald, ECE, Med. Director of Early Child Development Programs Mothercraft
Addressing the Issues Over the past ten years, various sectors/groups have been working to address the following issues that affect families with children who have special needs: Fragmentation between services Limitations of service specific funding mandates Coordination and access Long-waiting lists for services
CITYKIDS • Is a network of 35 organizations working together to provide: • Single point access and coordinated intake • Service delivery to children birth to 12 years of age with extra support needs and their families • Who reside within Toronto.
CITYKIDS Service Navigators …. • Broker referrals to special needs resource staff & infant development programs staff • Help professionals navigate best suited services for children and families • Provide informed service/referral options to professionals working with families • Provide centralized intake to OT consultation services to children in child care
CITYKIDS Service Navigators • Coordinate Interagency Team Meetings • Provide outreach & training opportunities to the community • Identify service and systems gaps to inform planning tables
Evolving Trends • Ever increasing length of wait times to access specialized services • Increasing parental isolation and need for immediate child development information • Increased importance of an integrated approach across health and social services to respond to the complex needs of children and their families
Brief Audit of Wait Times for Services in Toronto Wait TimeService 1 year Subsidized child care for child 2 ½ and up 4 – 8 months Preschool Speech & Language Services 8 -16 months Diagnostic Developmental Assessment (dependent on geographical area) 2- 5 months Occupational Therapy Consultation to Child Care 2- 6 months Infant Development Programs 3 months Public Health- HBHC (dependent on location) 18 -24 months TPASS – IBI
CITYKIDS partners recognized that the program model: • must build on existing strengths within the early learning system • must provide concrete, practical, everyday strategies to parents to increase their knowledge of child development • must increase access to professionals, resources and professional expertise • integrate children into community-based universally accessible programs
The Program Model • To strengthen the capacity of staff working in early learning environments to better support the needs of young children with developmental concerns and their families. • Equip them with skills • Equip them with knowledge • Cultivate relationships across sectors
Let’s Get Started Program Model Parent/caregiver and child program 6 - 8 families in the program 6 – 8 weeks in length (1 session per week) 1.5 hours per session Registration 1-2 weeks prior to start date of the program Facilitated by an Early Childhood Educator and co-facilitator Community professionals invited into the program on a weekly basis to provide information/strategies to parents and caregivers
Training Partner organizations came together to develop a one-day comprehensive training for early years professionals which includes: • Fundamentals – theory to practice • Building partnerships • Community outreach • Screening and registration • Staffing • Nuts & bolts of programming
Creation of a Pool of Professionals Each week a professional that offers specialized services (Speech Path, Public Health Nurse, Early Interventionist etc…) attends the program to provide practical child development information and everyday parenting strategies related to his/her area of expertise. Provide parents/caregivers general information on strategies to help build developmental skills. Integrate themselves into the program and model development specific play-based learning.
Role of the Partner/Professional: Provide Early Years staff and families with general resource information on child development Lead a small group discussion on a given topic in his/her area of expertise and answers general questions from parents and caregivers Describe his/her work and how he/she supports families - to demystify role and reduce barriers Provides information through brochures and flyers on his/her organization and/or services provided
A Multidisciplinary Approach Provides… Families with face-to-face connections to professionals and access to a variety of disciplines Families with practical parenting strategies and child development information to support parents understanding their child’s needs Families with increased coordination & access to services Increased OEYC staff knowledge of child development, family supports and community resources
Parent’s Response “This program is better for my daughter than the main drop-in. Less kids and less intimidating. She lasted the full two hours” “I am very grateful they are in our lives. I am told I am doing a great job and that makes me happy to hear that” “Everyday I waited was a day I lost”
