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Indian River County Healthy Start Coalition, Inc. Healthy Famifies IRC Program Children's Services Advisory Committee Grant 2007-08 PROPOSAL NARRATIVE A. ORGANIZATION CAPABILITY (Entire Section A not to exceed one page.) 1 . Provide the mission statement and vision of your organization. Our mission is to establish a system in Indian River County that guarantees all women access to prenatal care and all infants access to services that promote normal growth and development. Our vision is to provide every family the opportunity to maximize their child' s potential before, during and after birth. Our programs concentrate on reducing risks that impact the mother' s and caregivers ' relationships with the child because this is the infant' s environment. A child ' s environment impacts their physical well being and their emotional/mental health for life. 2. Provide a brief summary of your organization including areas of expertise, accomplishments, and population served. The Coalition, incorporated in 1993 is a private not for profit established by Indian River County citizens interested in making local decisions for state dollars and developing the types of maternal child health programs needed for our community. Through state statute and grants the Coalition is a private-public organization authorized by the state to plan, develop, implement and evaluate maternal/child health programs and processes in Indian River County. Through contracts with the State of Florida the Coalition is the sub-recipient of federal and state MCH dollars. The Coalition' s Board develops and approves budgets for three programs funded by the state. The fourth program, TLC Newborn was developed by members of the Coalition in 1997 and is locally funded. The Coalition establishes collaboration among providers to promote and maximize access to services for pregnant women and children up to age five. Since the Coalition' s inception, the county' s infant death rate has dropped from a rate of 12.04 in 1993 to 5 . 1 in 2005 . Coalition staff members work with obstetric and pediatric providers and IRMC to bring families at risk into programs appropriate for their needs. All pregnant women have the opportunity to complete the Healthy Start prenatal and infant risk screens. Healthy Start focuses on reducing risks for pregnant women and teens, so a healthy baby is born. TLC Newborn serves as a helpline for all parents and safety net for high risk families (especially teens) who may not have completed the prenatal screening. Healthy Families' focus is on reducing risks associated with neglect and child abuse. Healthy Families models positive parent/child interaction using home visitors and a child development curriculum. The Coalition also administers MomCare, a Medicaid Choice Counseling program that is contracted out to the Health Department. Because the Coalition is the lead agency for four programs designed to reduce risk and optimize positive outcomes for pregnant women and infants, we are in a position to implement efficiencies, eliminate duplication among programs and provide a wide array of services to families as their risks are identified. The Indian River Healthy Start Coalition uniquely focuses on the child prior to birth and at the earliest stages of a child' s life . Positive experiences and positive parent/child bonding has a lifelong impact on a child' s life affecting school readiness and their mental, emotional and physical health as they grow into adulthood. 3