STATEMENT OF RECORD RELEASE
NOVEMBER 1, 2023
Media Contact:
For Public Health Management Corporation
Veronica Mikitka Reed, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., 484-241-0473
Public Health Management Corporation Receives Funding Extension for Child First
Funds will support voluntary, evidence-based home visiting services to women during pregnancy and to parents with young children.
PHILADELPHIA – Public Health Management Corporation (PHMC), a nonprofit public health institute that creates and sustains healthier communities, announces its Child First program received a Maternal and Infant Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) grant from the State’s Department of Human Services that doubles its previous funding.
Child First is a home visiting program providing evidence-based early childhood mental health services to children ages 0-5 and their families impacted by trauma, abuse, poverty, and other adversities. This integrated psychotherapeutic intervention embedded in an early childhood system of care is designed to improve child and parent mental health, promote school readiness, and decrease child abuse and neglect. As the first provider of the Child First program in Pennsylvania, the program has provided services to families since November 2022.
“We have an extraordinary opportunity to inform our professional community about infant mental health, while also delivering life-altering therapeutic services to parents and babies through our Child First program,” said Program Director Bentley Eskridge. “We are excited to continue our work and expand our impact across Philadelphia.”
According to Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, even with the support of family, some children need a mental health professional trained in evidence-based trauma treatment to help both the children and their families. This program fills a critical need for infant and early mental health interventions for families and communities and holds the potential to disrupt intergenerational trauma and cycles of generational poverty in Philadelphia.
To make a referral to Child First, please contact Program Director Bentley Eskridge at (445) 776-4574.
About PHMC
Public Health Management Corporation (PHMC) is a nonprofit public health institute that creates and sustains healthier communities. PHMC uses best practices and evidence-based guidelines to improve community health through direct service, partnership, innovation, policy, research, technical assistance, and a prepared workforce. PHMC has served the region since 1972. For more information on PHMC, visit www.phmc.org.
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