Colchester County Early Intervention Home Visit Program

Colchester County Early Intervention Home Visit Program
	The Institute for Early Childhood Education & Developmental Services 60 Lorne St., Truro, NS B2N 3K3 Phone: (902) 893-3342
A Service to children, parents and families in homes in Colchester County. Mission Statement Our mission is to help each child, with special needs to develop to his maximum potential through a supportive family-centred approach in which parents enhance their child's learning and development through appropriate play strategies. Vision Statement To ensure that Early Intervention Services are received by all those who are at risk, including those not yet identified by improving education, professional and/or financial support through Local, Provincial and National partnerships. Early Intervention and Home Stimulation Early Intervention is a program offered to parents of young developmentally delayed children. An early childhood specialist works with parents to help them cultivate skills necessary to help their children. The case worker visits child and parent in the home with individualized program of infant stimulation that recommends specific play strategies and activities that will benefit the child. Parents are a very important part of this programs and are encouraged to participate and carry out the program at home. Early Intervention helps a child to develop to his/her fullest potential. Research shows beginning intervention with the developmentally delayed child at an early age produces effective results in terms of developmental progress in all areas; for example, motor, language, social, cognitive, and self-help skills. Intervention encourages and helps parents gain skills in observing their infants and young children, and in understanding that children learn from their play. Parents are helped to become aware of materials and activities that are suitable for children at each stage of development, and what community resources and services are available to them as they work with their children. Program Information Children from birth to school age are served by the Home Intervention program. Children accepted into the home visit program will show, or be diagnosed as having some developmental delay - this may have resulted from variety of conditions - physical, emotional, social, or intellectual. The Home Visit program operates all year and on a bi-weekly basis. During the winter, visits may be canceled if the regular schools are closed because of road conditions. Contact is made with the Early Intervention office at the Institute for Early Childhood Education and Developmental Services. From there, referral is made to the Home Visit Coordinator. Children are admitted by being referred to the Home Visit program by Parents, Doctors, Hospitals, Speech Therapists, Occupational Therapists, Physiotherapist, or other professionals who have had opportunity to evaluate he children's developmental progress. If the program is full at the time, then children will be placed on a waiting list, if this is desired. There is no charge for the Home Visit program. For information and home visit arrangements, please call or visit:
	The Institute for Early Childhood Education & Developmental Services 60 Lorne St., Truro, NS B2N 3K3 Phone: (902) 893-3342
Supported by Kings Regional Rehabilitation Centre Technical Resource Centre