Child and Family Services

In home services to families with children (birth to age 3) who have a developmental delay or disability, or who are at risk for delay due to a medical condition. 817-446-8000 or 1-888-754-0524, www.ECIofNorthCentralTexas.org.

ECI is a statewide program for families with children (birth to 36 months) with developmental delays, disabilities, or medical diagnoses that may affect development.

Services include:

• Audiology and Vision
• Assistive Technology
• Behavioral Intervention
• Case Management
• Counseling
• Family Coaching / Education
• Infant Massage
• Nursing
• Nutrition & Feeding
• Occupation Therapy
• Physical Therapy
• Social Work
• Specialized Skills Training
• Speech & Language Therapy
• Transition to Services Beyond ECI
• Translation/Interpretation

More information on Early Childhood Intervention

Intensive intervention for families with children who have experienced significant trauma or been impacted by substance use or the criminal justice system

Criminal Justice Division/Multidisciplinary Team

• Birth to 5 years
• Child has experienced: sexual abuse, physical abuse, or neglect,
• Child has experienced or witnessed domestic violence
• Child has experienced being kidnapped or taken (custody or trafficking)
• Tarrant County
• No fees

Family Recovery Court-Tarrant County

• Children birth to 6 years whose biological parents are participating in the Tarrant County Family recovery Court program, and who are named in party to the suit
• Tarrant County
• No fees

Safe Babies Program Tarrant County (Collaboration partner with First3Years)

• Birth to 2 years 11 months
• Eligible for ECI
• Participating in Safe Babies and family or SB staff have concerns about child’s development
• Or birth parents have been approved for monitored returns

Helping Through Intervention and Prevention (HIP)

• Birth to 2 years 6 months
• Mother or father 7 months pregnant or parenting a child under 2 who has experienced one of the following:
  • Parent have had a child die in their custody due to abuse and neglect
  • Parental rights have been terminated or relinquished for a previous child
  • Parent is a current or previous foster youth who is pregnant or parenting a child birth to 2 years 6 months
• Tarrant County
• No fees

Families Experiencing Homelessness residing in Fort Worth and Arlington Homeless Shelters

• Birth to 2 years 11 months
• Having a history of trauma
• Suspect a developmental delay
• Eligible for ECI
• Fort Worth and Arlington

In home services to families with children (birth to age 6) to empower the whole family to promote healthy child development, healthy behaviors, and strengthen family relationships.

• Focuses on the prevention of child abuse and neglect
• Families are eligible who exhibit stress/risk factor and child does not qualify for ECI
• Home-visiting services provided by ECS and community partners:
  • Counseling
  • Workforce development
  • Basic needs
  • Housing
  • Translation / Interpretation
  • Utilizing evidence-based practices:
  • Trust-Based Relationship Intervention
  • Primary Approach to Teaming
  • Services in the natural environment

• Nurse home visitors offer supportive guidance, responding to family questions about their newborn’s care
• Increases child well-being by bridging the gap between parents of newborns and community resources

CFS HealthySteps Specialists consists of  counselors, therapists or social workers and work within local pediatric offices as part of the pediatric team to offer screenings, referrals, and support during the well-child visit.

Core Components:

• Child Developmental, Social-Emotional & Behavioral Screenings
• Screenings for Family Needs (i.e. maternal depression, social determinants of health, other risk factors)
• Child Development Support Line (e.g. phone, text, email, online portal)
• Child Development & Behavior Consults
• Care Coordination & Systems Navigation 
• Positive Parenting Guidance & Information 
• Early Learning Resources
• Ongoing, Preventive Team-Based Well-Child Visits

Team-based Well Child Visits:

• HealthySteps Specialists always defer to the Primary Care Provider
• Workflow will vary depending on the baby’s needs and schedules
• HealthySteps Specialists’ participation
  in visits varies depending on:
  • Family concerns
  • Provider schedules and preferences

What is Help Me Grow?

Help Me Grow North Texas works to promote collaboration across child-serving agencies in order to build a more efficient and effective system that promotes the optimal healthy development of young children.

What is the Mission?

The Help Me Grow North Texas mission is to support parents in promoting optimal development and celebrating milestones during pregnancy and early childhood by:

• Linking families to information and community resources related to pregnancy, child development, and parenting.
• Providing personalized care coordination.
• Creating and facilitating partnerships within the community to improve the availability and quality of services for families.

Why is Help Me Grow needed?

• 1 in 4 children are at risk for developmental delays
• 80% of brain development happens by the age of 3 and 90% by the age of 5
• 80% of children with developmental/behavioral problems do not receive early intervention
• Children and their families benefit from a coordinated, region-wide system of early detection & intervention for children at developmental risk
• A gap exists between child health, child development & early childhood education programs
• 1 in 10 children in the USA is a Texan

For more information, visit HelpMeGrowNorthTexas.org

What is Help Me Thrive? 

Help Me Thrive is a new system of care to provide the best possible resources for all families with youth ages 6 up to 17 at no cost. We partner families and caregivers with a Family Navigator who is available to answer questions and link to community supports and services.

What is the goal of Help Me Thrive? 

Our goal is to empower all families with options so they can access the best resources for their families. Learn more about how Help Me Thrive is building relationships between communities and families.

Why is Help Me Thrive needed? 

Families benefit from a coordinated system of care.

Connects the gaps between mental health providers, school districts and other behavioral supports.

Offers evidenced-based approaches to strengthen families and youth, such as TBRI, WOW Talks and Parent Cafes.

For more information visit, www.HelpMeThriveNorthTexas.org 

Licensed mental health professionals build the capacity of those that work with young children, like teachers, to create nurturing environments where young children can thrive and learn to develop positive relationships with others.

• Brings mental health supports into natural settings where young children are
• Builds the capacity of child and family providers to create nurturing environments where you children thrive
• Young children succeed in learning and relationships

Parent Cafés:

1. A nationally recognized parent-to-peer learning process to keep children safe and families strong
2. Meaningful, guided conversations about what matters most to families

 Based on the Strengthening Families™ framework and 5 protective factors to promote healthy outcomes:  

1. Resilience
2. Relationship
3. Knowledge
4. Support
5. Communication
6.  

Benefits of Parent Cafés:

• Interact & share challenges with other parents
• Get ideas & learn new resources and skills
• Develop friendships & support from other parents
• Realize the essential role they play as a parent
• Build protective factors
• Time for reflection
• Opportunity for a little break
• Free food & free on-site child care

Group topics include:

• Music and Motion
• ADHD and Autism Parenting Support
• Circle Time
• SibShop
• Nurturing Parenting
• and much more

For upcoming groups