Supporting Families Through the Critical Years

This workshop has been postponed.

A child’s early years represent a crucial time in their overall development, but children and their families often face barriers to a healthy start. Significant disparities exist in pregnancy and birth outcomes according to race, ethnicity, age, income and health insurance status. Nurse-Family Partnership is closing that gap by partnering registered nurses with first-time, low-income moms and offering them support they wouldn’t otherwise have access to as they navigate a difficult and transitional time of life.

This workshop is led by a Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) nurse and therapist, both of whom partner with their patients to give families the best chance at health and happiness. Participation in the NFP program has shown significant impacts for families, including:

• A 48% reduction in child abuse and neglect
• A 56% reduction in emergency room visits for accidents and poisonings
• A 67% reduction in behavioral and intellectual problems among children at age 6

You will learn:

• the significance of the first 1,000 days of a child’s life (from pregnancy – 2 years old) in their long-term health and development
• the effects of Positive Childhood Experiences (PCEs) vs Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)
• the many factors that influence a child’s health (Social Determinants of Health)
  protective factors for developing strong families and preventing abuse
• how you and other caregivers can positively influence a child’s life in the crucial years of early childhood

This workshop will benefit anyone looking to better support young children and families – in your own home, in a professional or volunteer role, or in your congregation.

Laura Demastus is a licensed master’s level social worker with over 20 years of experience. She worked directly with mothers for 14 years, both in Lancaster County, as well as in the Dominican Republic. Laura is the bi-lingual (English-Spanish) therapist for Moving Beyond Depression, an in-home cognitive behavioral therapy program that serves low-income, first-time mothers participating with Nurse-Family Partnership.

Rebekah Good Charles has been a public health nurse for over 15 years. She has worked primarily with women and children’s health, first in Harrisonburg, Virginia followed by 7 years in Nicaragua working in international development with Mennonite Central Committee. In 2022, Rebekah moved to Lancaster with her family and joined the Lancaster Nurse-Family Partnership program as a bi-lingual, home-visiting nurse.

All sales are non-refundable.