Healthy Families
PASCO KIDS FIRST
Double Kudos to Healthy Families Pasco-Hernando
Trinity News
Written by Diane Galemmo
Healthy Families Pasco-Hernando (HFPH), part of the Healthy Families Florida statewide system of voluntary home-visiting services since 1999, has passed a stringent independent review for national accreditation by Prevent Child Abuse America, the nation’s leading organization for child abuse prevention since 1972. During the five-year review for accreditation, independent evaluators concluded that families served by HFPH had 58 percent less child abuse and neglect than those families with little or no intervention. “Accreditation by Prevent Child Abuse America is a hallmark of excellence,” says Becky Bennett, HFPH Program Manager. "To maintain accreditation, programs must complete the accreditation process, developed in conjunction with the Council on Accreditation of Services for Families and Children, every five years." HFPH also received recognition at the statewide program manager's meeting for achieving the highest home-visit completion rate out of large programs in the state.
Concurrent with its accreditation, HFPH celebrated its 10-year anniversary on Sat., Oct. 17 with a dinner-dance at Spartan Manor in New Port Richey. The 10th anniversary celebration was held, in large part, to honor the extraordinary and selfless team members who visit families on a regular basis. Seven of the 23 team members have been serving Pasco County families since the program's inception and were awarded a special “10 years of service” distinction. They are: Sierra O'Neal, Assistant Program Manager; Mary Wallace-Sandvik, Field Supervisor; Jerri Hall, Field Supervisor; Loretta Burns, Data Specialist; Jennifer Beldotti, Family Assessment Worker; Angelita Rodriquez, Family Assessment Worker; and Lori Ashmore, Resource Mom.
For the past ten years, Healthy Families Pasco-Hernando, an offshoot of Pasco Kids First, has been providing free support to expectant parents and families of newborns by offering home-visiting services by Resource Moms aimed at increasing parenting knowledge and skills. According to HFPH executive director Rick Hess, "Our Resource Moms do [about] 700 home visits each month; the home visit is the key to the Healthy Families program. At that time, the Resource Mom gathers information to help the participant family plan for their future home visits and what they'd like to accomplish. Parents are coached on appropriate parent-child interaction, and the family is provided link-ups with other service providers as needed. I was particularly excited by the [10th Anniversary] turn-out which really was confirmation that this community still thinks of Healthy Families Pasco Hernando as 'its own' and something in which all of us can take pride."
Jack Levine, the founder of Tallahassee-based 4Generations Institute, was the keynote speaker. An articulate and tenable advocate for Florida's children, Levine has been a proponent of policies and programs that identify needs and address solutions for children and their families for some 30 years now. He speaks about the value of preventative investments for children, parents, grandparents and elders. "Just as in families, the health of a community is in the depth and breadth of relationships among those who share common interests,” said Levine. “Healthy Families is not only saving families and children from being 'in the system,' it's saving a boatload of bucks. If you think prevention costs money, start running the tab on child abuse, medical and emotional tragedy, and courts and foster systems. Healthy Families has passed a national set of standards, yet it is hometown sensitive—a perfect balance."
The event's main sponsor—which receives money from the Florida legislature, as well as private donations and contracts with local providers—was the Ounce of Prevention Fund of Florida and the state of Florida's Department of Children and Families.
Visit http://www.pascokidsfirst.org, for info about HFPH. For more info about the 4Generations Institute, visit: http://www.4gen.org or contact Jack Levine at Jack@4This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or telephone him at 850-567-5252.Gen.org
Healthy Families
