Child First Timeline

2018

Affiliates Increase Capacity to Best Serve Families

Details

Partnered with Abecedarian to enhance services provided by Care Coordinators
Expanded service areas in North Carolina, to include Nash and Columbus
Increased capacity to serve more families in North Carolina and Connecticut, with the addition of Child First teams in both states.

2017

Child First National Program Office (NPO) Capacity Development

Details

Child First expands Board of Directors, to include the presence of national experts.
All Child First affiliates transition to the use of the Child First Clinical Record (CFCR)
NPO Training and Clinical Departments develop the Staff Accelerated Training (STAT) curriculum to accommodate new staff training needs.

2016

Child First Network Expansion

Details

Child First and Trillium Health Resources received an award in "Excellence in Best Practice” from the North Carolina Council of Community Programs.
Child First was one of three early childhood programs invited to participate in the White House, Office of Social Innovation, “My Brother’s Keeper, What Works Showcase” event.
Child First was demonstrated to be evidence-based by the federal Department of Substance and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Registry of Evidence Based Programs and Practices (NREPP).
Child First partnered with Trillium Health Resources and North Carolina Council of Community Programs for model replication in 24 counties of the eastern region of North Carolina.
Child First graduated Cohort 1 and initiated Cohort 2 in North Carolina, now providing services in 24 counties.
Child First affiliate sites in North Carolina received Medicaid reimbursement to fund Child First services.
Child First participated in formal collaboration efforts among the national Maternal Infant Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) models.
Child First moved the National Program Office to Trumbull, Connecticut.

2015

Growth of Infrastructure

Details

Child First received continued funding from Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Initiative (MIECHV) for services. This grant administration was changed from the CT Department of Public Health (DPH) to the CT Office of Early Childhood (OEC).
A Child First Electronic Health Record (EHR) was developed to capture both process and outcome data from all affiliate sites and provide rapid data analysis and reporting to both affiliates and Child First funders. The EHR is called the Child First Comprehensive Clinical Record (CFCR).
Child First developed Distance Learning using web-based technology, employing both on-line modules and videoconference through a partnership with the Erikson Institute in Chicago. This Distance Learning was blended with Learning Collaborative on-site Learning Sessions.
Child First service delivery began in Palm Beach County, Florida.
Child First was invited to join the National Evidence-Based Home Visiting Alliance as a founding member.

2014

National Expansion of the Child First Model

Details

Child First contracted with the Children’s Services Council of Palm Beach County in Florida to replicate Child First in three affiliate sites, starting in 2015.
Child First entered into advanced negotiations with North Carolina to replicate in the eastern counties.
Opportunities to expand capacity in Connecticut and nationally were explored including Pay for Success or Social Impact Bonds.
Inquiries were received from 25 states regarding replication.

2013

Child First, Inc. Begins Independent Operations as the National Program Office

Details

Child First, Inc. began independent operations as the National Program Office of the Child First Model in February 2013.
Child First established its National Program Office in Shelton, Fairfield County, Connecticut.
Exploration for replicating Child First beyond CT started in several states.
MIECHV funded affiliate sites (Cohort 3) began a Learning Collaborative in April 2013. With the addition of the new sites, Child First established a statewide presence at 15 affiliate sites in all 14 of Connecticut’s DCF administrative geographic areas.
Formal Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP) training and national rostering began for all Child First Clinicians and Clinical Directors.
The name of the model officially changed from Child FIRST (Child and Family Interagency Resource, Support, and Training) to Child First (no longer an acronym).

2012

Child First, Inc. Established: Expanded Statewide Presence and National Recognition

Details

Child First was included as part of a successful competitive expansion grant for Connecticut under the Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) program. This three year federal grant funded five new sites covering Ansonia/Derby, Danbury, East Hartford, Meriden, and Torrington/Winchester and expansion at three existing Child First affiliate agencies to serve Bloomfield, Bristol, and Killingly/Plainfield/Putnam/Windham.
Child First, Inc. was established, receiving designation as a 501(c)3, a not-for-profit corporation, effective September 2012.
Child First was featured as a Connecticut-developed evidenced-based home visiting program at the National Conference of State Legislators’ Summit, “Investing in Families through State Home Visiting Programs” in Hartford, Connecticut.
The Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, rated Child First as “Near Top Tier.” This organization identified the most promising interventions, using evidence to advocate for government support. Only three early childhood programs met this standard. (Child First met all requirements for “Top Tier” except for not having a second randomized control trial completed.)
Child First was recognized by the Social Impact Exchange as an S&I 100 non-profit.

2011

Randomized Controlled Trial Published: Child First Model Recognition as an Evidence-Based Home Visiting Model.

Details

Results of the randomized controlled trial were published in Child Development, Jan/Feb 2011.
Child First was designated one of nine national “evidence-based” home visiting models of the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program (MIECHV) by Health and Human Services (HHS).
RWJF provided additional support for replication in Connecticut, matched by funding from the Grossman Family Foundation and other Connecticut philanthropists.
Four new communities (Cohort 2) were chosen for a second round of replication in Connecticut. Three were funded by philanthropy during the start-up phase, and then funded by DCF: Middletown, Stamford, and Windham County. A Project LAUNCH grant from HHS supported New Britain.

2010

Model Replication Began

Details

Child First replication training began using the Learning Collaborative methodology, with guidance from the Connecticut Center for Effective Practice of the Child Health and Development Institute of Connecticut (CHDI). Six communities participated (Cohort 1).
Child First home-based services began in five new Connecticut communities in April 2010.

2009

Foundation for Expansion

Details

Based on the excellent results of the randomized controlled trial, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) gave Child FIRST a grant for the “Child First Replication Initiative” to expand to four new communities in Connecticut. Matching funds were obtained from 12 Connecticut philanthropists, DCF, and the CT Department of Education to allow expansion to these communities: Hartford, New Haven, Norwalk, and Waterbury. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) funding supported New London County.
Child First CT Coordination Office was established, with the Child Health and Development Institute of Connecticut (CHDI) serving as fiduciary and implementation partner until 2013.

2007

Child First Statewide Recognition

Details

Connecticut Hospital Association and Department of Public Health gave Child First at Bridgeport Hospital the 2007 Award for Community Service.
American Hospital Association Behavioral Health Task Force Report cited Child First as a “model behavioral health service strategy.”

2005

Plans for Future Sustainability

Details

Partial funding for Child FIRST from the Department of Children and Families (DCF) began in Bridgeport.
Medicaid billing was approved for children with mental health diagnoses.
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Local Funding Partnership program awarded its first grant to Child First. RWJF would continue funding multiple grants through 2018.

2003

Evaluation of Effectiveness: Randomized Controlled Trial

Details

The Child FIRST randomized controlled trial began, after a two year hiatus due to the tragedy of September 11, 2001. This was funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Starting Early Starting Smart – Prototype.
Child FIRST received a grant from the Safe Start Initiative, from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) through the city of Bridgeport, allowing further model evaluation for children exposed to violence.

2001

Child FIRST Established

Details

A grant from the Connecticut Heath Foundation gave Child FIRST an opportunity to create an “early childhood mental health system of care,” adding two full time staff –a Mental Health/ Developmental Clinician and a Care Coordinator.
The collaborative changed its name from the “FIRST Team” to “Child FIRST,” (Child and Family Interagency Resource, Support, and Training) to emphasize the central importance of the child in the context of the family.
Child FIRST received a Starting Early Starting Smart – Prototype (SESS-P) grant from the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to further enhance the model and to research its effectiveness by conducting a randomized controlled trial.

1998

The FIRST Team Received Funding for a Mental Health Clinician as Coordinator

Details

The FIRST Team received its first grant from the Connecticut Department of Social Services to hire a half-time, bilingual Master’s level social worker as the FIRST Team Coordinator. This was the birth of the Child FIRST Program within the Department of Pediatrics at Bridgeport Hospital in Connecticut.
Bridgeport Hospital contributed significant in-kind support and has served as the Child First Bridgeport program fiduciary from 1998 until the present.

1995

The FIRST Team Began at Bridgeport Hospital

Details

A group of Bridgeport health, education, and social service providers began meeting to address the challenges of young children and families who were “falling through the cracks” and not receiving critically needed services.
Under the leadership of Darcy Lowell, MD, a Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrician, a collaboration among early childhood service providers began, known as the “FIRST Team.” “FIRST” was an acronym standing for “Family Interagency, Resource, Support, and Training.”
Bridgeport Hospital served as the home and fiduciary of the FIRST Team in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

Child First Timeline

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