The Summit County Health Department has launched a new home visitation program that allows medical professionals to care for infants, toddlers and elementary-aged children in a comfortable environment, providing resources and support to families that may be struggling financially. Kelsey Fillmor e, a registered nurse with the Health Department, said the Strong Starts program is modeled after a Medicaid service called Targeted Case Management, which offers the same support as the new home visitation program but requires a patient to qualify for Medicaid. “We want to make sure that anybody who needs this program is able to get it,” Fillmore said. “To strictly say it applies to ‘uninsured’ families cuts off a lot of people who maybe have insurance, but their insurance doesn’t cover things like this. We don’t turn away families who have insurance because they might not be getting these resources either, and we don’t want to isolate those families.” The home visitation program is more extensive than a typical doctor’s visit, too, with Fillmore and clinical assistant Katie Vazquez Rodriguez often spending multiple hours with a family. “Usually, we go into the home and start off by doing a general safety assessment of the home,” Fillmore said. “Is there anything out that a kid might be able to get into that might be dangerous? Could they pull down any of the furniture on themselves? Do the plugs have plug covers? Things like that to ensure the child is in a safe home.” After the home assessment, the pair of medical providers speaks to the child’s caregiver. Fillmore said they often focus on postpartum depression and anxiety, hoping to give parents support and ensure adults in the family are taking care of themselves mentally, too. “This program covers children from age zero to 8, so the type of screening that we’ll do for mom depends on the circumstance,” Fillmore said. “We’ll also talk about any medical concerns the mom might have for her own health … and connect them with any providers that they might need and give referrals.” The nurses and assistants also conduct a thorough assessment of the child, asking questions about the birth to understand if there were any complications or other reasons for concern. They discuss the child’s sleeping and eating habits in addition to screening for any developmental issues, including communication abilities and fine motor skills. “We’re able to identify if there are any areas that need improvement,” Fillmore said. “From there, depending on how they score, we can refer them to other programs, like an early intervention or a different primary care provider.” The developmental assessments give parents and medical providers an idea of whether the child has autism or other neurodiversities, too. “We also do a basic physical assessment, so we’ll listen to the baby’s lungs, weigh the baby and overall make sure that their muscle tone is good and they’re looking OK,” Fillmore said. “After we go through that, it helps us to get a better insight into what unique needs that family might need.” Once all of the assessments are completed, Fillmore and Vazquez Rodriguez sit down with the family and talk to them about developmental milestones, nutrition, any necessary referrals and answer questions. The visits typically last at least one hour, which Fillmore said is often overwhelming, especially for new mothers, so the Health Department can split the home visitation into several sessions. “If they’re not comfortable meeting in the home, we’re also able to meet in public spaces,” Fillmore said. “We’ll meet at a park at the apartment complex or a safe, public space for those families.” Vazquez Rodriguez also provides translation services for Spanish-speaking families, which she said is rewarding because she’s offering community members resources and giving them a person to contact if they have questions or concerns. “Some of these moms come from out of the country and don’t really have family here, so it’s nice to be able to provide some support and help them find comfort in where they’re living,” Vazquez Rodriguez said. “It feels really great to be able to help these parents.” Fillmore said the Health Department doesn’t need insurance information from the family unless they’re enrolled in Medicaid, in which case they’ll bill the government program for the services. Otherwise, a family only needs to provide the Health Department with the child’s name and date of birth to be put on the waitlist. “We try to aim for three to five visits a week, but I would say it’s been less than 10 families that we’ve started with because it’s been a slow start to get referrals,” Fillmore said. “Sometimes it can be really scary, especially because we’re calling from the Health Department and that seems like we’re a government agency, so that can be a barrier at times, but we’re hoping as we continue to talk with other families and go to outreach events, we’ll be able to get an influx of families for this program.” Fillmore said she’s excited for her full-time job to become home visitations, adding that it’s unique for medical providers to be able to offer such a high level of care for local families. “A lot of the time, we’ll go into homes where the families are in difficult situations, so we’re able to be that person to help connect them with these resources,” she said. “It makes going to work so much easier when you’re able to see change immediately because with a lot of other things we do, there are small, tiny steps you see before growth, but this you’re able to see firsthand.” To sign up for the Strong Starts waitlist, Fillmore said to call the Health Department at 435-333-1500 and ask for her or Vazquez Rodriguez. 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