Project Title: Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program (MIECHV) Program
Recipient Organization Name: Virginia Department of Health (VDH)
Mailing Address: 109 Governor Street, 9th Floor, Richmond, Virginia 23219
Project Director Information: Andelicia Neville, MS; (804) 864-7773; andelicia.neville@vdh.virginia.gov
Program Web Address: http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/family-home-visiting/maternal-infant-and-early-childhood-home-visiting-program-miechv/
Grant Funds Requested: $7,712,055
PURPOSE: The purpose of the Virginia MIECHV Program is to expand the availability of evidence based home visiting and strengthen the early childhood system for ‘at risk’ children and families in Virginia. Virginia’s 2020 Needs Assessment identified 74 at-risk communities for poor health and developmental outcomes for children and families. The Virginia MIECHV Project plans to serve 45 of these identified at-risk communities with evidence-based home visiting programs.
GOALS/OBJECTIVES: The Virginia MIECHV program goals are to increase the quality, availability, and effectiveness of early childhood home visiting programs designed to strengthen families in Virginia; to improve coordination of early childhood services at the state and local level with priority in the identified at-risk communities; and to develop new and utilize existing fiscal strategies to improve program sustainability.
Program objectives include:
1. Assure the availability of evidence-based home visiting (EBHV) programs to at least 1,200 families in at-risk communities annually
2. Assure the continuation of state-level agency collaboration, and ensure involvement of partners to develop and improve home visiting programs
3. Increase the quality of professional development training and resources for early childhood home visiting programs
4. Improve access to the early childhood continuum of services
5. Expand number of families served by evidence-based home visiting models through implementation of a multi-agency sustainability plan
METHODOLOGY: The Virginia MIECHV program implements three evidence-based home visiting models: Healthy Families America, Nurse-Family Partnership, and Parents as Teachers. The proposed total caseload of families to be served in the 45 at-risk communities is 1,200 families in FY2022, and 1,200 families in FY2023. The current caseload of MIECHV is 1,200 families.
Collaboration of state and local early childhood partners will continue through Early Impact Virginia and local early childhood coalitions. Activities include professional development competencies and training for all home visitors, quality assurance monitoring for fidelity to the home visiting models, sustainability planning, strengthening referral systems, strengthening the use and reporting of data, and spreading CQI strategies.