Model Overview

The LAUNCH/MYCHILD model is an integrated care model developed by the Boston Public Health Commission, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services, and seven pilot implementation partner agencies and 6 expansion partner sites with funding from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The model is based within the medical home and designed to improve the social emotional wellness of young children, including infants, and their families. A family partner and mental health clinician work together with families in the primary care setting to identify goals for their children, support them with skills and resources, and empower them to use their own skills and knowledge as caregivers, to work towards their identified goals.

Integrated care models are particularly beneficial for very young children, considering the frequency with which infants are seen in the primary care setting, the importance of early identification and intervention for a range of concerns, including developmental delay and behavioral difficulties, and the positive association families tend to have with primary care providers.

In this model, families are referred for services by the primary care provider or self-refer. Services are provided in the primary care setting or at a location convenient for the family. After the initial referral, families participate in a thorough engagement and assessment process, to identify strengths and discuss potential areas of need and growth for the family. The assessment helps shape a Care Plan, using a multi-generational approach to identify and work toward meeting goals for optimal social emotional wellness of the young child and family. The family partner and mental health clinician partner with caregivers in services to identify skills and resources within themselves and their communities to achieve their goals.

The core team includes a:
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Family Partner

Mental
Health Clinician

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Primary Care
Provider Champion

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Program Administrator Champion

The Family Partner-Mental Health Clinician relationship

is a unique and powerful collaborative relationship central to this model. The Family Partner and Mental Health Clinician work together to provide the family with comprehensive services tailored to each family’s needs. It is critical that this relationship is seen as non-hierarchical, and the contributions of both the family partner and mental health clinician are valued equally. Reflective supervision for the two together supports a successful, healthy relationship with both members feeling supported and valued.
A Dynamic Duo
The Family Partner is a parent with personal experience navigating systems for a young child with social, emotional, or behavioral needs. This personal experience is a strong asset in all aspects of the Family Partner’s work. The ECMH Clinician has specialized training and professional experience in the field of early childhood mental health. This includes in-depth understanding of early social and emotional development, parent child relationships, and consultation to early education providers.
Designated a Best Practice by the Association for Maternal and Child Health Programs (AMCHP) and given the The Best Practce Award during the 2021Innovation Hub Award Ceremony, recognizing exceptional programs in the MCH Innovations Database that have demonstrated a positive difference in the maternal and child health field. The Best Practice Award is awarded to the practice that received the highest score out of the 40 practice submissions to the database in 2020.

Published Articles

Enhancing Early Childhood Mental Health Primary Care Services: Evaluation of MA Project LAUNCH
Beth E. Molnar, Kristin E. Lees, Kate Roper, Natasha Byars, Larisa Méndez-Peñate, Christy Moulin, William McMullen, Jessica Wolfe & Deborah Allen
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10995-018-2548-4


Abstract
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of an innovative early childhood mental health intervention, Massachusetts Project LAUNCH. Early childhood mental health clinicians and family partners (paraprofessionals with lived experience) were embedded within community pediatric medical homes. Methods A longitudinal study design was used to test the hypotheses that (1) children who received services would experience decreased social, emotional and behavioral problems over time and (2) caregivers’ stress and depressive symptoms would decrease over time. Families who were enrolled in services and who consented to participate in the evaluation study were included in analyses (N = 225). Individual growth models were used to test longitudinal effects among MA LAUNCH participants (children and caregivers) over three time points using screening tools. Results Analyses showed that LAUNCH children who scored in age-specific clinically significant ranges of social, emotional and behavioral problems at Time 1 scored in the normal range on average by Time 3. Caregivers’ stress and depressive symptoms also declined across the three time points. Results support hypotheses that the LAUNCH intervention improved social and emotional health for children and caregivers. Conclusions for Practice This study led to sustainability efforts, an expansion of the model to three additional communities across the state and development of an online toolkit for other communities interested in implementation.

Engaging and Supporting Young Children and their Families in Early Childhood Mental Health Services: The Role of the Family Partner
Sameera S. Nayak, Carol Tobias, Jessica Wolfe, Kate Roper, Larisa Méndez-Peñate, Christy Moulin, Malika Arty, Arielle A. J. Scoglio, Amy Kelleher, Jacqueline Rue, Molly Brigham, Tarsha Bradshaw, Natasha Byars, Angelina Camacho, Sade Douglas & Beth E. Molnar
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10597-021-00796-8

Abstract
This study explores the role of family partners, peer professionals with lived experiences of raising a child with behavioral health needs, and their value in primary and community-care based mental health services for young children aged 0–8 years. Interviews and focus groups were conducted with staff, leadership, and caregiver participants (n = 38) from two early childhood mental health programs and analyzed using thematic analysis.

Five interdependent themes emerged:
(1) the centrality of lived experience to the family partner role;
(2) the importance of the family partner in family engagement and relationship building;
(3) the value added by the family partner in navigating systems;
(4) the ability of the family partner to build skills
and empower caregivers;
(5) the role of the family partner in alleviating caregiver stress and other mental health concerns.

Adapting and expanding the role of family partners will improve effective mental health care for children and their caregivers.

Making the case:

The LAUNCH/MYCHILD Model for
ECMH Integration changes lives.

The LAUNCH/MYCHILD model is an integrated care model developed by the Boston Public Health Commission, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services, and seven pilot implementation partner agencies and 6 expansion partner sites with funding from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The model is based within the medical home and designed to improve the social emotional wellness of young children, including infants, and their families. A family partner and mental health clinician work together with families in the primary care setting to identify goals for their children, support them with skills and resources, and empower them to use their own skills and knowledge as caregivers, to work towards their identified goals.

Integrated care models are particularly beneficial for very young children, considering the frequency with which infants are seen in the primary care setting, the importance of early identification and intervention for a range of concerns, including developmental delay and behavioral difficulties, and the positive association families tend to have with primary care providers.

In this model, families are referred for services by the primary care provider or self-refer. Services are provided in the primary care setting or at a location convenient for the family. After the initial referral, families participate in a thorough engagement and assessment process, to identify strengths and discuss potential areas of need and growth for the family. The assessment helps shape a Care Plan, using a multi-generational approach to identify and work toward meeting goals for optimal social emotional wellness of the young child and family. The family partner and mental health clinician partner with caregivers in services to identify skills and resources within themselves and their communities to achieve their goals.

Building Professional Capacity

A pediatric clinic with a LAUNCH/MYCHILD team has specialized capacity to respond to a range of early childhood mental health needs immediately. LAUNCH/MYCHILD services are fully integrated into the primary care system as an essential component of quality pediatric primary care. The LAUNCH/MYCHILD team builds clinic capacity to identify, understand, and respond to social, emotional, and behavioral health needs in a family centered way. Along with direct services, LAUNCH/MYCHILD staff provide “drive-by” consultations, printed/electronic resources, and training opportunities to bolster medical providers’ ability to respond confidently and appropriately to early childhood mental health needs. Providers report that LAUNCH/MYCHILD has transformed the way they understand, approach, and respond to early childhood mental health needs.
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