Advancing Resources for Children (ARCh) Project: Connecting NC’s Systems to Strengthen Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Outcomes
The primary focus of the ARCh Project is to improve infant and early childhood mental health (IECMH) outcomes of North Carolina children ages birth to five by increasing access to services and advancing workforce capacity to effectively meet their needs. Undergirding all planned ARCh activities is a goal of ensuring that all children across our state can access IECMH services that are:
- developmentally sensitive,
- trauma-informed,
- evidence-based,
- and provided to them from within their own communities.
For five years, from Fall of 2022 until Fall of 2027, CCFH will partner with agencies around the state and engage families of young children to build a robust NC workforce focused on young children’s mental health. ARCh Project activities will:
- expand mental health consultation to pediatricians and early interventionists,
- support the development of a statewide childcare consultation model,
- increase access to IECMH endorsement,
- support the expansion of several multi-generational, evidence-based interventions (specifically, Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT), Attachment & Bio-behavioral Catchup (ABC), and Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP)),
- and provide training and supervision to multi-disciplinary professionals across the state in a wide range of IECMH topics, including screening, referrals and cross-disciplinary collaboration, diagnostic assessment, reflective supervision, secondary traumatic stress, and more.
What’s in a name?
The name ARCh was selected based on the strengths and capacities that arches convey. As a structure that supports the load between two points and over an opening, arch bridges can span vast areas. An arch transforms the forces affecting the loadbearing points, and because of this, they are used to support very large masses that get placed on top of them.
Similarly, through the ARCh Project, we will connect pieces of IECMH work that NC already has in place, connect regions and places to spread and share resources, and connect the different sectors (including but not exclusive to childcare, pediatrics, treatment, and early intervention) to share and expand knowledge of IECMH. Doing this together, we will be stronger and able to carry more of the load for families!
Funding
Funding for the ARCh Project comes from a five-year, $2.5 million Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health (IECMH) grant through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The Center for Child & Family Health (CCFH) is the primary recipient of this grant, with subcontracting partners including: the North Carolina Psychiatric Access Line (NC-PAL) through Duke University’s Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, the North Carolina Infant Mental Health Association (NCIMHA), NC Child, and the Family Support Network of UNC.
Additional key partners in the development of the ARCh Project proposal and its implementation include North Carolina’s Division of Child and Family Wellbeing (DCFW), and the NC Division of Early Care and Education (DCDEE).
