Session: Embedding Early Childhood Behavioral Health Services in Community Settings: Lessons Learned from Project Launch (Society for Prevention Research 22nd Annual Meeting)

Five years ago, SAMSHA awarded its first cohort of Project LAUNCH (Linking Actions for Unmet Needs in Children’s Health) grants.  One of these grants was awarded to a partnership between a state Department of Health and an academic clinical research center, and this symposium presents the outcomes and on-going efforts of this collaboration. The overarching goal of this initiative has been to address the unmet needs and promote healthy development in young children (age 0-8) by building capacity for a continuum of behavioral health services in the natural settings that young children spend time (i.e., early care and education, pediatric primary care clinics).  Specific activities included universal developmental screening, direct consultation to staff, assessment of children and families, and evidence based parenting programs and professional development activities for staff (i.e., the Incredible Years Parent and Teacher Programs).  A core component of the work was a focus on sustaining the grant activities following the end of funding and related state-wide system change and policy goals.  In this symposium we focus on our efforts related to pediatric primary care clinics.

The first paper provides an overview of the Project LAUNCH model as implemented in pediatric primary care clinics and presents data regarding the initial impact of the project.

The second paper utilizes an implementation science lens to describe the on-going process of community-based implementation and the barriers and facilitators of implementation over time.

The third paper focuses on how Project LAUNCH fit within the larger system change and policy initiatives in the state and the refinement of a state-wide comprehensive and coordinated early childhood system of care. 

This symposium will allow for in-depth discussion about a specific early childhood prevention model, program development and implementation, program outcomes, barriers and facilitators of implementation, and state policy and system change activities supporting sustainability. By bringing together prevention scientists and a collaborator at the state Department of Health, this symposium will provide an opportunity to discuss program effectiveness from multiple perspectives including child and family outcomes, organizational change, and public health and policy impact. To conclude, the discussant, who is the Coordinator of Project LAUNCH at SAMSHA will facilitate a discussion about the lessons learned from this project.