The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) has committed $3 million to increase the availability of Child First, a program designed to decrease child maltreatment and circumvent family entanglement in the foster care system. This funding aims to enhance access to the program in regions across the state that have been identified as underserved, according to a recent announcement by the NCDHHS.
The investment will be distributed among Alliance Health, Trillium Health Resources, and Vaya Health, to extend Child First services to additional counties. Child First operates on the principle of two-generation care, catering to children up to age five and their primary caregivers. Services include home-based clinical therapy, tackling issues like poverty, substance abuse, domestic violence, and the myriad challenges that might threaten the sanctuary of a stable family life, "We know that the earliest years of life set the foundation for a child’s future health and well-being," NCDHHS Secretary Dev Sangvai conveyed in the official release on the NCDHHS website. These expanded services are anticipated to reach more families, providing essential support at pivotal moments.
As part of this multi-million dollar initiative, Trillium Health Resources and Alliance Health are each receiving $1 million to expand the program into a combined 22 counties. Vaya Health, on the other hand, is dedicating a portion of their $1 million funding to the Child First expansion in western North Carolina. The remaining funds will support other established behavioral health interventions such as Parent-Child Interaction Therapy and Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.
Child First is not a newcomer on the block. It is currently offered in 31 counties through various providers including Children's Home Society and RHA Health Services, among others. With the new funds, more families in North Carolina will have the opportunity to partake in trauma-informed care that reaches them where they live. NCDHHS Deputy Secretary for Opportunity and Well-Being, Susan Osborne, stressed the importance of early intervention stating on NCDHHS, "Investing in early intervention and prevention services is one of the most effective ways we can support children and families, helping them build stability and resilience before a challenge becomes a crisis."
To ensure the program's success statewide, NCDHHS is rolling out the Child First Learning Collaborative. This initiative is a strategic move to unite providers and partners in assessing the program’s impact and guide future investments. This team-up is just one facet of the department’s much larger $835 million plan to boost behavioral health services across North Carolina, aiming to shape a system that can provide for children and families through care that is both trauma-informed and family-oriented.
