Sisters of St. Joseph Health and Wellness Foundation

ANNUAL REPORT

2011-2012

In-Home Family Education Program Michele Baranaskas, LCSW

In-Home Family Education is a voluntary program providing parenting education and support to families with young chil-dren in their homes. These community-, strength-, and re-search-based programs build protective factors (http://www.childwelfare.gov/preventing/promoting/protectfactors/) which enable families to deal more successfully with whatever challenges arise, thereby reducing the need for more costly services.

In-Home Family Educators help parents understand their roles as their child's first and most im-portant teachers. They provide information and support in such areas as prenatal care, child health, early learning and literacy, and child development and behavior. They help connect fami-lies to resources in their community and help families stay together safely. This is done by em-phasizing each family's strengths and helping them reach their goals.

Partners in Community Outreach Partners in Community Outreach is a coalition of West Virginia research-based In-Home Family Education programs serving families during pregnancy and until children are at least three years old. These model programs have a long history of collaboration, forming Partners in Community Outreach in West Virginia in 1999.

Our vision: The vision of Partners in Community Outreach is that every West Virginia family, from pregnancy until children are at least three years of age, has the opportunity to participate in a high quality In-Home Family Education program in their local community.

Our mission: The mission of Partners in Community Outreach is to build a statewide system of In-Home Family Education that assures program quality and accountability, thus helping pro-grams to improve child health, increase school readiness, enhance parenting skills, and reduce child maltreatment.

For more information about Partners in Community Outreach and In-Home Family Education, please visit www.wvpartners.org and www.inhomefamilyed.com.

The three West Virginia In-Home Family Education programs that make up Partners in Commu-nity Outreach are:

Healthy Families America (HFA) www.healthyfamiliesamerica.org Healthy Families America is a national program model designed to help expectant and new parents get their children off to a healthy start. The program was launched in 1992 by Prevent

Child Abuse America in partnership with Ronald McDonald House Charities. In West Virginia, Healthy Families America serves Cabell, Lincoln, Mason, and Wayne Counties.

Maternal Infant Health Outreach Workers (MIHOW) www.mihow.org The Maternal Infant Health Outreach Worker (MIHOW) Program is a parent-to-parent intervention that targets families from pregnancy through the child’s third year of life. The program employs and trains parents to serve families in their own communities by encouraging and supporting healthy lifestyles and positive parenting practices, as well as helping families under-stand and promote healthy child development. MIHOW workers provide linkages to medical and social services and help families develop and work toward goals for the future.

Parents as Teachers (PAT) www.parentsasteachers.org Parents as Teachers is the overarching program philoso-phy of providing parents with child development knowledge and parenting support. The Parents as Teachers National Center drives that philosophy through

four components (personal visits, group connections, screening, and resource network) and three key areas of emphasis (parent-child interaction, development-centered parenting, and family well-being). In West Virginia, Parents As Teachers serves Boone, Brooke, Clay, Doddridge, Greenbrier, Hancock, Lincoln, Kanawha, Marshall, McDowell, Mercer, Monongalia, Monroe, Nicholas, Pocahon-tas, Preston, Summers, Taylor, Tucker, Tyler, Wetzel, and Wood Counties.

In the fall of 2011, the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, Bureau for Chil-dren and Families (BCF) required In-Home Family Education programs currently receiving funding from the BCF to complete a Quality Home Visiting Program Plan. The plan asked them to submit their model standards and their specific program adherence addressing seventeen items in four categories: well-trained, competent staff; high-quality supervision; strong organizational capaci-ty; and referral and service networks. These categories contain elements proven to lead to quality services for children and families being served by In-Home Family Education programs.

Coincidentally around the same time, the Sisters of St. Joseph Health and Wellness Foundation recognized the value of In-Home Family Education and contacted Partners in Community Outreach to inquire how to assist these programs in carrying out their important work. A request for pro-posals was developed, and programs currently operating an In-Home Family Education program in the state and not receiving Federal home visiting funding were invited to submit a letter of inquiry.

The Foundation has awarded the following grants to these Partners in Community Outreach mem-ber programs to assist in strengthening cross-model standards and quality indicators:

Children's Home Society of WV-Parkersburg Office (PAT) - $25,000 Monongalia County Starting Points Center (PAT) - $15,000 Northern Panhandle Head Start (MIHOW) - $8,000 Tucker County Family Resource Network (PAT) - $25,000 Wetzel County Center for Children and Families (PAT) - $15,000

Currently, nearly 120 In-Home Family Educators in 21 Partners In Community Outreach-affiliated programs are serving approximate-ly 1,000 families in 29 counties in West Virginia.

CHILDHOOD STRESS, TRAUMA, AND SSJHWF GRANT PROJECTS

Helen Skormisley, CSJ April 2012

This review of recent published research studies offers a way of understanding some of the health and wellness issues of children that are prevalent today and are addressed in the various grant proposals submitted to the SSJHWF that offer projects to prevent or treat these concerns. Hope-fully, this short appraisal will aid the SSJHWF in making decisions related to the most focused and advantageous use of available grant funds.

Highlights are as follows: A. Stress is a normal part of life and a certain amount is actually

necessary for survival.

B. Children learn from parents and/or other caregivers how to respond to stress in a physically and emotionally healthy manner.

C. Toxic or unmanageable stress results from adverse experiences that may occur over weeks, months, or years. Children are unable to effectively cope with this type of stress by them-selves. An example of toxic stress is child maltreatment, which includes abuse and neglect.

D. It is known that 75% of adult brain weight has been gained by age 2, with near completion of adult intracranial volume by age 5. When children are overwhelmed with unmanageable stress levels, early brain development is disrupted and there is compromised functioning of the nervous and immune systems. This can lead to impaired brain circuit connections, devel-opment of a smaller brain, and cognitive deficits that can continue into adulthood. In fact, one researcher states that “Traumatized children are often wrongly treated for attention defi-cit disorder/hyperactivity.” (Dr. Victor Carrion, Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sci-ence, Stanford University)

E. High levels of childhood toxic stress can lead to health problems later in life. The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study demonstrates a link between specific 1) violence-related stressors, including child abuse, neglect and 2) risky behaviors and health problems in adult-hood such as alcoholism, depression, eating disorders, cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabe-tes, respiratory disorders, and other chronic diseases.

F. ACE events include: 1. Emotional, physical, or sexual abuse; 2. Emotional or physical neglect; 3. Household dysfunction; 4. Mother treated violently; 5. Household substance abuse; 6. Household mental illness; 7. Parental separation or divorce; and 8. Arrest or incarceration of a household member.

G. Other traumatic experiences that are considered ACE events are: 1. Significant separation from caregivers; 2. Serious illness or death of someone close to the child and other unnatural death of someone close to the child; 3. Suicide attempt or completed suicide by someone close to the child; 4. Direct experience of serious illness; and 5. others such as extremely pain-ful and frightening medical procedures, natural disasters, bullying, and experiencing or watch-ing war events and terrorist attacks on TV.

H. The above information highlights the importance of recognizing and addressing the effects of traumatic exposure in young children as soon as possible. Several studies recommend invest-ing in early-intervention programs that can alter the conditions under which ACE events oc-cur.

I. Recommended interventions include: 1. Parenting Education Programs that occur in group settings and are used to reduce the risk

factors and enhance the protective factors that are associated with ACE events. 2. Screening and Treatment Programs that can provide early identification and treatment of

toxic stress-related events thus preventing long-term negative health and behavioral out-comes.

3. Home Visitation Programs that involve trained personnel visiting families in their homes to provide training, education, and support regarding prenatal and infant care and child devel-opment. This program begins before birth and continues past the second birthday. Some studies have shown a 40% reduction in child maltreatment incidences when early home vis-itation is used.

Some of the Grants approved by the SSJHWF since 2002 that support projects which are fo-cused on prevention and/or direct intervention of stressful traumatic events of children include: 1. Funding of mental health counselors and educators who provide many services in school-

based health centers (individual, group, classroom, consultation with parents) that help chil-dren deal with personal issues and assist them in strengthening self-esteem. Some of the issues are anxiety, depression, grief, drug addiction, familial difficulties, alcoholism, bully-ing, and truancy, just to mention a few. Therapists and educators provide extensive screen-ing to identify risk factors, stress-related events, and health problems which can be treated and/or prevented.

2. Establishment and support of Child Advocacy Centers which provide forensic interviewing for children who have been abused and whose cases are in litigation. These centers offer counseling to victims and survivors individually and in groups. They also provide community education aimed at abuse prevention.

3. Support of WV Child Advocacy Network activities, one of which is to provide trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy training to therapists working in and with WV Child Advocacy Centers. This training was just recently offered also to therapists who are working in school-based health clinics.

4. Collaborating with Prevention In Community Outreach staff to provide funding for in-home parent training and education programs related to pre-natal, infant, and child development education.

REFERENCES

Hodas, Gordon R. Responding To Childhood Trauma: The Promise and Practice Of Trauma Informed Care. Pennsylvania Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services; 2006. Kronkosky Charitable Foundaton Research Briefing: 2009. Grief and Bereavement in Children. Middlebrooks JS, Audage NC. The Effects of Childhood Stress on Health Across the Lifespan. Atlanta (GA): Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control; 2008. National Scientific Council on the Developing Child. Cambridge: The Council: 2005 [cited 2007 April 9]. Ex-cessive stress disrupts the architecture of the developing brain. Working Paper No. 3. Available from: http://www.developingchild.net/pubs/wp/Stress_Disrupts_Architecture_Developing_Brain.pdf. 2. Ness, Cindy D. The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study. Schuyler Center for Analysis and Advoca-cy Research Briefing: 2009. Overview of the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study. Robert F. Anda, MD, MS Co-Principal Investi-gator www.acestudy.org.

Sisters of St. Joseph Health and Wellness Foundation Grants Awarded FY 2011-2012

Since its creation in 2001, the Sisters of St. Joseph Health and Wellness Foundation has awarded more than $8 million in grants. In fiscal year 2011-2012, the Founda-tion awarded $704,774.97 for grant funding for the following selected projects:

Cabin Creek Health Center $32,000.00 Supports a school-based mental health counselor position for Herbert Hoover SBHC and Sissonville Indian Health Center

Cabin Creek Health Center $20,000.00 Supports integrated mental health services in school-based health centers served by Cabin Creek Health Systems

Hancock County Board of Education $50,000.00 Supports Hancock County School district in funding and obtaining funds to build a school-based health facility adjacent to the new elementary school that is to be built in Hancock County

Marshall University Research Corporation $41,776.50 Supports the Technical Assistance Unit to provide effective service to those school-based health centers which have initiated mental health services

New River Health Association $30,050.00 Supports a school-based mental health educator position serving the Fayette County Schools

New River Health Association, Inc. $38,748.00 Supports a school-based health educator position in Summersville, WV

Pendleton Community Care $40,725.31 Supports a school-based mental health counselor position

Pendleton Community Care $43,996.88 Supports a school-based mental health educator position

Rainelle Medical Center $22,032.28 Supports a school-based mental health counselor position

Rainelle Medical Center $33,250.00 Supports a school-based mental health educator position

Rainelle Medical Center $42,000.00 Supports a school-based mental health counselor for Greenbrier West High School

Ritchie Regional Health Center $34,300.00 Supports a school-based mental health counselor position The West Virginia Catholic Foundation $59,156.00 Supports the school-based health programs at St. Paul’s School in Weirton, WV (serving the Catholic Schools of Hancock and Brooke Counties) and the school-based health programs at St. Vincent de Paul Parish School (serving the Catholic Schools of Ohio and Marshall Counties)

WV Primary Care Association, Inc. $80,000.00 Supports the position of the Executive Director of the West Virginia School-Based Health Assembly

Center for Rural Health Development, Inc. $6,500.00 Supports development of Faces of Vaccine Preventable Diseases videos

Marion County CAC $17,000.00 Supports provision of services at the Child Advocacy Center in Marion County, WV

Preston County Caring Council Family Resource Network $18,000.00 Supports development of Child Advocacy Centers in Preston, Taylor, and Barbour Counties

REACHH-FRC $35,000.00 Supports REACHH-FRC to continue on-site therapeutic services

West Virginia Child Advocacy Network $18,240.00 Supports the Children’s Mental Health Initiative of WVCAN

Wetzel-Tyler Child Advocacy Center $42,000.00 Supports WTCAC to achieve accreditation and to continue to meet the needs of the children and families in the Tyler County and Wetzel County communities

Board of Directors of the SSJ Health and Wellness Foundation

Charles O. Casto Marc B. Chernenko Mary Otten - Secretary Joan M. Phillips, MD, FAAP Christine Riley, CSJ Mary Ann Rosenbaum, CSJ - Treasurer Maureen Runyon - Vice Chairperson Judith Ann Teufel, CSJ - Chairperson

Dona Wiseman

Virginia Yeager, CSJ

Angela Zambito Hill

Executive Directors of the SSJ Health and Wellness Foundation

Janice Landwehr, CSJ Helen Skormisley, CSJ

For more information about the foundation, contact Co-Directors: Janice Landwehr, CSJ (304) 233-4500, ssjhwf@aol.com

Helen Skormisley, CSJ (304) 363-4223, helenssj@aol.com

Sisters of St. Joseph

Health and Wellness Foundation 137 Mount St. Joseph Road

Wheeling, WV 26003 (304) 233-4500

www.ssjhealthandwellnessfoundation.org

Sisters of St. Joseph

Health and Wellness Foundation

VISION STATEMENT The children of West Virginia have resources available to assist them in living to their fullest potential. MISSION The Foundation will make optimal use of its resources in order to promote and support collaboration and partnership among various local, state, and national groups working to address the wholistic health of children in West Virginia.