Creating a Healthy Family environment is a journey filled with love, support, and access to the right resources. Healthy Families Indiana (HFI) is dedicated to guiding families across Indiana on this journey. As a voluntary and evidence-based home visitation program, HFI focuses on nurturing healthy families and promoting healthy child development from the earliest stages. By offering a comprehensive suite of services, including child development support, healthcare access assistance, and valuable parent education, Healthy Families Indiana empowers parents to build strong, thriving families.
What is Healthy Families Indiana?
Healthy Families Indiana stands as a multi-site, statewide system expertly administered by the Indiana Department of Child Services. Reaching all 92 counties throughout Indiana, HFI operates through 31 agencies across 43 local sites, ensuring accessibility for families in every corner of the state. This vital program is made possible through a combination of funding sources, including the Department of Child Services, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Maternal, Infant, Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) initiatives, and both state and local funds directly supporting HFI sites.
Healthy Families Indiana collaborates closely with a network of essential community partners. These include health clinics, local hospitals, Indiana WIC offices, the Department of Child Services (DCS), and numerous other agencies. This collaborative approach allows HFI to effectively identify families who would benefit most from early education and support services, ideally prenatally or shortly after childbirth. The core mission of the program is to strengthen families, proactively reducing the risks of child abuse and neglect, mitigating childhood health issues, and preventing juvenile delinquency.
Since 1994, Healthy Families Indiana has proudly partnered with Healthy Families America (HFA), a nationally recognized and respected home visitation model. This partnership underscores HFI’s commitment to utilizing proven strategies and maintaining high standards in family support services.
Core Goals of Healthy Families Indiana
Healthy Families Indiana is driven by a clear set of goals, all centered around fostering healthy families and positive outcomes for children:
- Systematic Engagement & Community Partnerships: Proactively connect with families facing multiple stressors, offering home visiting services from prenatal stages or at birth, and cultivate strong, lasting community collaborations.
- Safe and Nurturing Environments: Promote the creation of secure and supportive environments where children and families can thrive.
- Strengthening Parent-Child Bonds: Cultivate and enhance nurturing and positive relationships between parents and their children.
- Healthy Child Development: Promote optimal childhood growth and development by actively engaging parents in their child’s journey.
- Enhancing Family Functioning: Improve overall family well-being by mitigating risk factors and building protective factors that contribute to positive childhood outcomes.
- Staff Well-being and Professional Growth: Equip staff with comprehensive training and ongoing support essential for their professional fulfillment and effectiveness.
The program’s accountability framework is firmly rooted in achieving measurable results and a commitment to continuous improvement, as detailed in the Healthy Families Indiana Strategic Plan 2018-2022.
The Evidence Behind Home Visitation for Healthy Families
Extensive research conducted over the past two decades consistently validates the profound impact of providing education and support services to parents, particularly around the time of a baby’s birth and continuing in the years that follow. This support demonstrably reduces the risk of child maltreatment and fosters positive, healthy family and child-rearing practices. Families who participate in intensive home visitation services experience a range of positive changes, including consistent utilization of preventive health services, increased rates of high school completion, improved employment prospects, reduced reliance on welfare, and fewer subsequent pregnancies. For further in-depth information, explore the Healthy Families America website and their impact briefs: https://www.healthyfamiliesamerica.org/impact-briefs/
Screening and Assessment Process
Healthy Families Indiana employs a thorough screening and assessment process to identify families across the state who can benefit from their services. Referral points include WIC Programs, health clinics, and local hospitals. Initial screening involves a validated 8-Item screen, chosen for its effectiveness in predicting the need for a more detailed assessment. It’s important to note that a positive screen does not indicate a risk of child abuse or neglect but signals the value of deeper conversation with the family to understand their needs.
Families with positive screens are then offered a comprehensive assessment using the Parent Survey, a standardized and validated instrument, conducted by trained family assessment workers. Families scoring 40 or higher on the Parent Survey are offered the voluntary opportunity to participate in the home visiting program, which is then tailored to meet their unique needs and circumstances, further supporting the creation of a healthy family environment.
Highly Trained and Dedicated Staff
Healthy Families Indiana places a high priority on the training and ongoing development of its staff. All HFI staff members, including Family Resource Specialists, Family Support Specialists, Supervisors, and Managers at local HFI sites, are required to complete Core Training within their first six months of employment. Prior to engaging directly with families, all newly hired HFI staff must participate in a comprehensive orientation program. Furthermore, ongoing training is mandated at three, six, and twelve months post-hire, alongside any additional training required by HFA to adhere to Healthy Families America Best Practice Standards. This rigorous training ensures that families receive the highest quality support from knowledgeable and skilled professionals.
Adherence to Healthy Families America Model
All Healthy Family sites operate under the guidance of the Healthy Families America (HFA) model. This model is built upon twelve research-based critical elements and a strong commitment to consistent, high-quality service implementation. This includes all aspects of service delivery, from the initial engagement of families to the content of services provided and the careful selection and training of service providers. To delve deeper into the evidence-based effectiveness of the HFA model, please visit the Healthy Families America website: https://www.healthyfamiliesamerica.org/our-impact/evidence-of-effectiveness/
For additional information regarding Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) funded services within Indiana, please visit the Indiana Department of Health website: https://www.in.gov/health/mch/home-visiting/maternal-infant-and-early-childhood-home-visiting-miechv/
Find Your Local Healthy Families Office
To connect with Healthy Families Indiana and discover how they can support your healthy family, please utilize the map provided to locate the office serving your county. You can also access a comprehensive list of contacts at local Healthy Families offices: Local Healthy Families Office Contact List.
| Click on image to see map. | DCS Central Office302 W. Washington St., Indianapolis, IN 46204-2738 |
|---|
