Child First

+ Who We Work With

Child First serves children ages birth to five and their families that meet the following criteria:

• Feel overwhelmed by the behavior or emotions of their young children
• Have experienced violence, trauma, substance use, homelessness or other complex challenges
• Feel stressed and hopeless
• Need support and services for their child and other family members

+ Program Strategies

• Work closely with parents and partners to understand their goals
• Visit with the parent and child each week in their home or community
• Directly decrease the stress experienced by connecting families with services and supports (like food, housing, furniture, child care, health care, and job training)
• Provide Child-Parent Psychotherapy to repair the impact of trauma on the child and strengthen the caregiving relationship, which prevents the biological changes that lead to long-term damage on a child's developing brain.

+ Program Goals

• The child is happy and healthy without behavior problems!
• The child is learning and successful in school and life
• Parents become stronger, wiser, and more loving
• Parents feel less stressed and overwhelmed by the past and present challenges in their life.
• Connect families with community-based supports and services that they want and need.

+ Costs and Eligibility

• Pregnant women and children from birth to five year's of age
• Children with very difficult behaviors or delays in their development or learning (including anger and fighting, risk of being expelled from childcare, sadness, or late language)

Billing sources will be explored per family. When available, Medicaid may be billed by the Child First program. Child First is available without regard to legal status.

Savio's Child First team includes bilingual staff and can serve families who primarily speak Spanish.

+ Team Structure

A clinical team consists of a Licensed Mental Health Clinician and a Family Support Partner. This is extremely effective because it provides two sets of eyes and two perspectives and allows for tremendous flexibility. The clinical team are also able to support each other and hold space for each other.