EDC to Support Infant Health in Massachusetts
Education Development Center (EDC) has been selected by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) to launch and lead the Infants with Prenatal Substance Exposure (IPSE) Collaborative, with funding provided by both DPH and the Massachusetts Department of Children & Families (DCF). Across the Commonwealth, the Collaborative will work to build strong, supportive systems of care for infants with prenatal substance exposure and their families.
“Families who have infants experiencing prenatal substance exposure face huge barriers to their well-being and that of their child,” says Kristy Whitcomb, EDC project director and a subject matter advisor for the Collaborative. “Two key barriers are stigma and fragmented services that hinder families’ ability to access the resources they need.”
These and other barriers result in infants experiencing fewer benefits from pediatric care, home visiting, and early intervention services that can help address their unique needs. Drawing on EDC’s expertise in maternal and child health and continuous improvement, the new IPSE Collaborative is poised to address these barriers and make a significant difference for infants and families.
EDC’s team will use the Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s Breakthrough Series Collaborative model to engage families and experts in maternal and infant health, health practitioners, and home visiting in a collaborative learning setting focused on improving outcomes for infants. EDC has previously used the model to support home visiting programs in dramatically improving services and outcomes for families and children.
The IPSE Collaborative will:
- Improve coordination across state and community services
- Increase family engagement with pediatric care, early intervention services, and home visiting
- Build health care providers’ capacity to deliver effective family-centered and trauma-informed care
“We are so honored to be selected to partner with DPH on this important initiative,” says Zandra Levesque, EDC director of maternal and child health. “We look forward to convening experts and people with lived experience to identify barriers, foster collaboration, and develop a scalable model of care that can be adopted across Massachusetts to transform services and ensure all infants thrive.”
We invite you to learn more about our work focused on Maternal Health & Home Visiting, Early Childhood Development & Learning, and Child Health & Safety.
