Children with early-onset emotional and behaviour problems experience high risk of chronic mental health problems, co-occurring developmental challenges and family psychosocial adversity.  Positive parenting practice and high-quality childcare are essential, evidence-based protective factors for young children. However, such supportive services often siloed and inaccessible to many families facing complex challenges.  Targeted child mental health programs that address these needs and enable collaboration across children’s family, educational and healthcare settings are essential to shift children’s early mental health pathways in positive directions.

In this demonstration project, the Family Check-Up (FCU)®, a collaborative, assessment-driven and strength-based program emphasizing motivational interviewing and positive parenting, was integrated into an early childhood education setting.  We will review program components and evidence, and local and systemic implementation facilitators and barriers.  This workshop will inform innovative approaches to integrating targeted and evidence-based child mental health prevention within early educational settings in Ontario for high-needs families.

Learning Objectives

1. Share findings from the first Canadian studies of the "Family Check-Up® (FCU)", an evidence-based family-centered child mental health prevention program.
2. Describe a collaborative “real-world” demonstration project and partnership between the City of Hamilton, the Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic Childcare Centres (HWCCC) and McMaster Children’s Hospital to provide the FCU within early education settings.
3. Discuss implications for innovative systems change in child mental healthcare and targeted prevention for highest-needs children.