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November 2009
Kansas Project LAUNCH
More than 600 Finney County families will benefit from a $4.25 million grant recently awarded to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE). Project LAUNCH (Linking Actions for Unmet Needs in Children’s Health), a project of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, is a five year cooperative agreement that supports coordination of state and local services to strengthen families. KU’s Institute for Educational Research and Public Service wrote the grant on behalf of KDHE, the Kansas Children’s Cabinet and Trust Fund, the Kansas Early Learning Coordinating Council, and the Finney County Community Health Coalition.
According to SAMHSA, Project LAUNCH works toward coordinated programs that take a comprehensive view of health. It addresses the physical, emotional, social, and behavior aspects of wellness. The public health approach addresses the health needs of the population rather than addressing only the health problems of individuals. Project LAUNCH seeks to improve outcomes at the individual and community levels by supporting protective factors that keep families strong.
“Faced with a vibrant and diverse community in Southwest Kansas, the system to support families must address challenges that meet the needs of a rapidly changing population in a largely agriculture community,” said Kevin Gallagher, Vice President of Mission & Ministry, St. Catherine Hospital, Garden City, KS. “This grant will help us develop and enhance service to meet these challenges.”
Eighty percent of the money will go toward efforts in Finney County. While Kansas continues to be predominantly Caucasian, Finney County has experienced tremendous growth in minority populations such as Hispanic, Vietnamese, German Mexican Mennonites, and most recently Burmese and Somalians. There has been a 110 percent increase in residents of Hispanic ethnicity from 1990 to 2000. Currently, 44.5 percent of residents identify as Hispanic, compared with 8.8 percent in Kansas overall.
Through state and local collaboration, Project LAUNCH will support evidence-based services that strengthen families and will enhance current programs in the community. The work will build on early childhood efforts that have been led by Smart Start Southwest Kansas and the Russell Child Development Center. Project LAUNCH will expand strengthening families efforts in Finney County that have been led by the Community Health Coalition partners including the Kansas Children’s Service League, Area Mental Health Center, and USD 457 Parents as Teachers. Finney County was a prime location for the LAUNCH initiative because of the already established collaboration among agencies, businesses, and the community.
The Kansas Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics will also partner in this effort to provide training on developmental screening in Finney County and in select communities across the state.
“Project LAUNCH represents a great way to be able to work on state issues as well as to enhance services to children and families in Garden City,” said Jim Redmon, Executive Director of the Kansas Children’s Cabinet and Trust Fund. “It’s a great opportunity for children and families.”
H1N1 Pandemic Influenza Update
Flu season is here, and this year there are even more reasons to be informed. Brenda Nickel, Child and School Nurse Consultant with the Bureau of Family Health, Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) offers the following updates and resources on this year’s Pandemic Influenza. Be sure to check out the online resources available to support your agency or program in staying healthy this fall and winter!
To help with hand-washing, a new “Exception to the Locked Storage of Alcohol-Based Hand Sanitizer” for licensed preschools, child care centers and school-based programs was issued. The details can be found online at: http://www.kdheks.gov/bcclr/download/Exception_to_locked_storage_of_Alcohol_Based_Hand_Sanitizers.pdf
Influenza resources:
The flu can be very serious, especially for younger children and children of any age who have one or more chronic medical conditions. These conditions include asthma or other lung problems, diabetes, weakened immune systems, kidney disease, heart problems and neurological and neuromuscular disorders. These conditions can result in more severe illness from influenza, including the new H1N1 virus. Additional resources for parents, child care and schools can be found at the KDHE H1N1 Website at http://www.kdheks.gov/H1N1/index.htm.
Protective Factors Key in Community Response Team's Work
The Wichita Child Abuse Fatalities Community Response Team (WCAFCRT) was created in response to the eight child abuse fatalities, all birth-4, that occurred in Wichita during 2008. The team includes over 50 members representing 35 agencies, community members and parent leaders in the Wichita area. The team meets quarterly and has two workgroups that meet monthly. The WSU Center for Community Support and Research assists with facilitating, evaluating and supporting the effort with funding from the Kansas Children’s Cabinet and Trust Fund, the Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention lead agency for the state of Kansas. To guide its work, the Team utilizes the development of five protective factors.
The Kansas Strengthening Families Initiative Protective Factors are:
As result of the WCAFCRT, The Period of PURPLE Crying was chosen against other models of Shaken Baby Syndrome Prevention and has been implemented in Wichita.
New Program Aimed at Preventing Shaken Baby Syndrome
Kansas Children’s Service League (KCSL), with funding from the Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services (SRS) and the Kansas Children’s Cabinet and Trust Fund, is partnering with agencies across the state to implement The Period of PURPLE Crying® Shaken Baby Syndrome prevention program statewide. The Period of PURPLE Crying® is an evidence-based prevention program created by The National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome. This program is designed to be a triple dose strategy used to make a cultural change by educating new parents and the community that crying is a normal part of infant development.
Dose 1 is Hospital-Based. The Period of PURPLE Crying® curriculum (10 minute video, 11 page booklet, and short script) is presented through birthing hospital staff bedside to parents of newborns before being discharged. The model has been implemented in Sedgwick County hospitals and has received additional funding through SRS to implement the program into hospitals in Shawnee, Wyandotte and Johnson counties. In addition, independent agencies, foundations, hospitals and SRS Regional offices are partnering with KCSL and funding Dose 1 in Cheyenne, Sherman, Thomas, Reno, Harvey, Butler, Sumner, Lyon, Atchison, Mitchell, Ford, Montgomery, Labette, Neosho, Bourbon, Crawford, Riley, Wabaunsee, Potawatomie, Jackson and Jefferson Counties.
Dose 2 is Community-Based. Reinforcement materials are presented to parents through community organizations (early home visitation, child care providers, pediatricians, schools, etc) to reinforce messages provided in Dose 1. KCSL has partnered with several organizations to provide Dose 2 materials. Currently, the following organizations have been trained to provide Dose 2: Healthy Start Home Visitors (statewide), Pregnancy Crisis Center, Wichita Children’s Home, Child Start, and several Parents As Teachers programs. This list continues to grow as information about the program is being distributed across the state.
Dose 3 is a Media Campaign. The media campaign is designed to inform members of the community who would not have received materials through Dose 1 or Dose 2 (ie: grandparents, neighbors, other family members, etc) about the normalcy of crying. The media campaign currently includes print and radio spots that will be circulated within communities.
The Period of PURPLE Crying® was selected against other models of Shaken Baby Syndrome Prevention with the help of the Wichita Child Abuse Fatalities Community Response Team (see Wichita Child Abuse Fatalities article in this newsletter). For more information about The Period of PURPLE Crying® implementation please contact Amy Karr at 877-530-5275.
Kansas Fatherhood Coalition
You may be familiar with the work that the Kansas Fatherhood Coalition is doing to promote fatherhood and father involvement throughout the state. The Kansas Fatherhood Directory is widely being used as a resource, and this year’s annual Fatherhood Summit was again a success. Recently, the Kansas Fatherhood Coalition undertook a strategic planning process to ensure that they are meeting the needs of agencies and fathers in the state and to adjust the organization’s direction in response to the changing environment. This is an effort to produce fundamental decisions and action to help shape and guide fatherhood in Kansas. The following information includes the current results of the Kansas Fatherhood Coalition strategic planning process.
Mission: The mission of the Kansas Fatherhood Coalition is to promote healthy fatherhood in the lives of children.
Vision: Our vision is that fathers in Kansas communities engage in healthy and positive relationships with children.
Guiding Principles
Fatherhood definition: The relationship of a father and child connected by paternity, adoption, or the choice to serve as a father figure by acknowledging the responsibility of providing support and care for a child.
Target Audience: In order to achieve our mission and vision, the Kansas Fatherhood Coalition must target diverse audiences that impact the lives of fathers; primarily organizations, agencies, and leaders at local, state, and national levels. Our approach will stress the importance of involving fathers and father figures and how to effectively serve them.
For more information about the Kansas Fatherhood Coalition, visit www.ksfatherhood.org.
Resources
CDC Parent Portal
http://www.cdc.gov/parents/
CDC offers parents trustworthy, accurate information and resources on many parenting topics. The CDC Parent Portal organizes and presents the information in one central location, making it easier for parents to find what they are looking for. The portal is organized into these five topic areas:
Love Is Not Enough to Keep Your Family Strong
http://www.keepyourfamilystrong.org/
Love Is Not Enough is an Initiative of Strengthening Families Illinois, a collaboration between the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services and over 40 partner agencies and organizations. Love Is Not Enough Parent Cafes were developed by the Illinois Family Partnership Network as a partner of Strengthening Families Illinois.
The Love Is Not Enough initiative is spreading six core messages:
These messages are based on research from the Center for the Study of Social Policy, which has revealed that children are safer when their families are strengthened by protective factors. The website provides key questions for parents to think and/or discuss the six core messages.
Questions or comments about the KSF Plan newsletter? Contact us at ksfplan@ku.edu .
Previous Kansas Strengthening Families Newsletters
March 2009 (ARRA, Parent Helpline, 211, eLearning)
December 2008 (Stakeholder Meeting)
July/August 2008 (Block Grant RFP, Parent Mutual Support Fact Sheet, Kansas Parent Initiative, KACCRRA's EXCEL program)
May 2008 (Background and Overview of the KSF Plan, Center for the Study of Social Policy)
