HEALTHY START COALITION OF HARDEE

Federal maternal, infant and early childhood home visiting (miechv) program: to improve health and developmental outcomes for at-risk children through evidence-based home visiting programs. The project works with families residing in highlands county to equip parents and other caregivers with the knowledge, skills and tools they need to assist their children in being healthy, safe and ready to succeed in school.

Fatherhood - team dad project: in america nearly 18.5 million children grow up without their fathers. This project offers education, training and support to help men become the responsible, engaged, and empowered fathers their children need them to be. It follows the "24:7 dad national fatherhood initiative" parent education program curriculum. Our "team dad" coach works with fathers one-on-one to complete the course work and provide any other additional tools necessary to be a great dad.

Teen pregnancy prevention alliance (tppa) program: the tppa program was established in 1994 as an action group of the healthy start coalition of hardee, highlands & polk counties. Our mission is to identify and reduce the risk of pregnancy in polk county through the collaboration of agencies and the empowerment of our youth and community. Local funds enhance and support the tppa program to reduce teen pregnancy rates, educate teens on the importance of abstinence and other safe sex practices, and encourage them to become role models for their peers. Annually, the tppa hosts the festival of faith and teen summit. The festival of faith event provides faith leaders an opportunity to meet with other faith leaders and to receive the information and education necessary to speak with their congregation about teen pregnancy prevention. Our 2024 teen summit event was held in lake wales. The teen summit included workshops, games, education, resources, and wellness checks for participants. During the fiscal year, bi-monthly "let's talk" virtual workshops were also held where teens and parents participate. They follow along with the national campaign that encourages open communication and healthy relationships to prevent teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections.

Beds 4 babies program: due to the high number of accidental infant suffocation deaths, the healthy start coalition of hardee, highlands & polk counties initiated our beds 4 babies project. Our b4b project focuses on public awareness, distribution of portable cribs, and "safe sleep" education. Our b4b project provides residents of hardee, highlands, and polk counties who cannot afford a safe place for their babies to sleep with a portable crib, two crib sheets, a halo sleep sack swaddle, a children's board book titled "sleep baby, safe and snug, and safe sleep education. Since the beginning of our project in 2006, hschhp has educated and delivered approximately 6,679 cribs.

Fetal infant mortality review (fimr) program: fimr is a comprehensive, multidisciplinary, and multisystem review of the events that occurred before, during, and after a pregnancy which led to a fetal death or the death of an infant. Fimr describes and defines the community's health, builds knowledge of the healthy start service delivery plan, improves communication, identifies gaps in services, and implements creative solutions to identified needs. The florida fetal infant mortality review projects are organized under florida statutes 766.101. The subcommittees within the fimr project are the case review team and community action group. These committees could use your valuable expertise and experience. The fimr case review team is a team of expert members from the health care sector and other systems of care in the community who review a summary of the case information to identify issues within the systems of care and make recommendations for community and systems change to improve the service to mothers, babies, and families. The fimr community action group is a diverse group of community leaders who review recommendations, assess their importance, and design, develop, and implement strategies for change to ensure that mothers and infants receive high-quality health care.