(uplifting music)
- So, Sam was a full-term baby.
At a year old I started seeing a few differences.
But I didn't realize how concerned I should be,
given that I didn't have a lot of knowledge
of typical development being a young mom,
staying home with my children and you know,
I didn't have a lot of kid experience.
- One out of every four young children is at moderate
or a high risk for developmental,
behavioral or social delay.
Research shows that the earlier these delays are identified
and children receive services, the better the outcome.
This is particularly true
of children in low income families,
such as those served by WIC.
These children often miss out on critical services.
At a time when those interventions
would have had the greatest effect on their quality of life.
- The Developmental Milestones Program,
gives WIC staff a reliable, professional tool
to use with parents to monitor their children's development
and it does this in a positive,
supportive way that engages parents and encourages them
to take an active role
in their children's developmental journey.
It can be linked to nutrition education, referrals,
and participant center goals when appropriate.
- The WIC Program and the Developmental Milestone Program,
are perfect partners because the main focus
for the WIC Program is for healthy children.
To give children a healthy start in life.
- We lost out on two years of early intervention
and access to services.
It was just because I wasn't informed.
- WIC staff may be among the first
to observe these possible developmental concerns
and refer for further assessment.
(uplifting music)
Almost a hundred percent of WIC staff said
that parents were willing to complete the checklist
and nearly all parents reported
that they learned new information
about their children's development.
WIC staff members indicated the program was easy
to implement.
With 80% reporting
that the program takes five minutes or less.
In fact, some staff reported
that when parents completed the checklist during data entry
and no referral was needed,
the program added virtually no time to the appointment.
- The clients that we have here were really open,
first of all,
to always fill out the checklist which was great
and then anytime that we did have anyone,
have a referral and we followed up with them about it,
almost all of them actually,
the doctors were proactive about, you know,
getting them in to different services.
That has been awesome.
- Almost a hundred percent
of WIC staff said they referred one or more children.
90% said the program helped them learn when to refer
and how to support parents through the referral process.
Most importantly,
the program helps children get the services they need.
- For myself, I have a nine month old
and so I'm constantly checking out these checklists
to see how he's doing so both ways,
I mean personally and then professionally it's been,
I think, amazing.
- Using materials developed by experts at the Center's
for Disease Control and Prevention,
the WIC Developmental Milestones Program,
is focused on children, meaningful to parents,
and easy for staff.
- One thing that I've really come
to realize is knowledge is power
and when you inform parents,
then they have the ability to be a good advocate
for their child and to help guide their children
to reach their greatest potential.
(uplifting music)