Province Expands Early Intervention for Children

COMMUNITY SERVICES--Province Expands Early Intervention for Children

The provincial government is expanding its early-intervention services to young children with developmental disabilities by improving access in rural areas where the services have been limited.

"Helping children reach their full potential is a goal for every parent and a responsibility this government shares," said Community Services Minister Peter Christie.

“Bringing early-intervention services to rural families means less travel for them,” he said. “Children will benefit from family service plans developed with their parents and community-based professionals. These new early-intervention programs are another way we’re ensuring our children are ‘growing up great.’”

The expansion started with the opening of the Inverness-Richmond Early Intervention Program in January. Other new programs or expansions will be operational soon.

The rest of Cape Breton Island will be covered by an expansion of the existing Allkids Early Intervention Program operating currently from Glace Bay.

Digby County will be covered by an expansion of the program in Clare. The Colchester County Early Intervention Program and the Sackville-Bedford program have both been expanded to provide service to parts of East and West Hants counties.

The Eastern Shore area of Halifax County will be covered by a new program being established under the auspices of the Women''s Centre LEA Place in Sheet Harbour.

Sixteen early-intervention programs currently serve approximately 375 children across the province.

Early-intervention programs serve children with developmental disabilities from birth to five years of age.

The programs have a primary home-visiting component to help children develop to their potential within the families and communities. The home visitors develop comprehensive family service plans, working closely with families, in consultation with the child’s medical and community-based professionals.

"Early intervention is about the whole family," said Mary Delaney, co-ordinator of the Inverness Richmond Early Intervention Program. “That’s so important, especially in rural areas where families may feel very isolated.

While we’re working with the special-needs kids, we’re also talking to their parents about their concerns and frustrations. It can be very emotional, but it feels good knowing you’ve made an impact on their day, their week -- on their life, really.”

Early interventionists going to the home is a major plus for these families. In rural areas, travelling to programs can be a huge task for parents of special-needs kids. When getting to an appointment means bundling up one or more children, arranging transportation and working around everyday chores, parents feel defeated before they start. By coming into the home, the early interventionist brings the program to the family.

Early interventionists assist the children and families in the transition to child care and formal schooling, providing support and information to enhance the development of appropriate programming and associated educational plans. Early interventionists also organize parent and child play groups and develop opportunities for families to network and acquire information.

The Department of Community Services provides grants to support these programs, develops policies, standards and procedures, and assists community groups in starting programs in their local areas.

Funding for these programs has almost doubled to $935,000 for program expansion and the addition of staff in rural areas with limited services. Total spending on all 16 early-intervention programs across the province is $1.9 million.