Reach for the Stars! 2017 NC CCHCA Conference begins

The 2017 North Carolina Child Care Health Consultant Association Conference began Wednesday afternoon, March 8th, with an introduction to Dr. Tamar Ringel-Kulka, the new Project Director and Jacquie Simmons, the new Project Coordinator for the North Carolina Child Care Health and Safety Resource Center.

Dr. Tamar Ringel-Kulka

Jacquie Simmons

The conference continued with a session with updates and new initiatives from the Division of Child Development and Early Education, led by Lorie Peugh and Laura Hewitt.

Lorie Peugh

Initiatives presented were the Race to the Top / Early Learning Challenge Grant results, Child Care Development Fund (CCDF) requirements, and Early Childhood Mental Health Consultantion grant.

The Child Care Commission and their relationship with the child care rules were explained in detail, and a special emphasis was made on the important role of the voices of Child Care Health Consultants to the rule making process during public hearing and public comment. They continued with a discussion of the temporary rules put in place in September 2016 to meet CCDF requirements and the relationship to the permanent rules which will be put into place spring 2017. The tentative date for the public hearing of rules is May 8, 2017. The Resource Center will send a notification to all CCHCs when the permanent rules are published (in April) and details about the process of public comment and public hearing.

They also introduced DCDEE WORKS - a new Workforce Online Reporting and Knowledge System which will function as a single portal of entry for workforce education and professional development to collect, report, and track child care workforce information needed to support education requirements

CCHCs are keeping child passengers safe!

On June 7th-10th, Tonya Moss - CCHC in Catawba County - assisted in the facilitation of a Safe Kids Child Passenger Safety Technician Training in Lincoln county. 

Christine Rosinski - CCHC in Gaston County - participated in the training where she earned her Child Passenger Safety Technician Certification.  Shown here, Christine, Tonya and Juliana Whitaker - CCHC in Lincoln County - participated in a car seat check on June 10th in Lincolnton, NC.

The car seat check was open to the public and organized by Juliana.  The check was successful and allowed the participants of the week long technician training to put their skills to the test. 

For more information on becoming a nationally certified Child Passenger Safety (CPS) technician, click here.

Success of NAP SACC means good health for nation’s children

Spring 2016 Carolina Public Health magazine.

Included in the Spring 2016 Carolina Public Health magazine is a photo of our very own child care health consultant (CCHC) Terri Walls as she plays on homemade drums with children at Ms. Jackie’s Place Family Child Care Home in Craven County, N.C.

The entire Spring 2016 Carolina Public Health magazine is posted at: http://sph.unc.edu/cphm/cph/.

Child Care Health Consultant Bonnie Garner facilities delivery of WHEE wagons to programs in Buncombe county!

 The WHEE Wagons have arrived!  Children at Irene Wortham Early LearningCenter now have the opportunity to receive IV medication and/or g-tube feedings from a little red wagon.  WesternCarolina University School of Nursing students and faculty delivered five red WHEE Wagons to a developmental day program for children. 

Bonnie Garner, RN, Child Care Health Consultant with MAHECand Buncombe Partnership for Children has been providing intensive health consultation and coaching to Irene Wortham Early Learning Center, a developmental day program for children with special health needs.  As an advocate for children and promoting a healthy and safe environment, the CCHC was looking for opportunities to support the health needs of several medically fragile children and to help the staff meet the developmental needs of the child.  Bonnie collaborated with the Pediatric faculty and students from Western Carolina University’s School of Nursing who have developed the WHEE Wagon Program.    

This  service learning program seeks to provide specially equipped IV Pole Radio Flyer wagons for children with medical needs. The team has witnessed the joy that a simple wagon ride can bring to a medically fragile child, and evidence shows that play can have a significant impact on pediatric health status. The group feels it is vitally important that children who have complex health needs to be able to enjoy the same experiences that other children do, and feel a wagon ride is just the way to do this!

A WHEE Wagon is just like a normal red wagon that kids ride and play in every day, but these wagons are specially equipped with an IV pole attached to the front. The IV pole attachment on the wagon ensures that the medically fragile children can have the opportunity to transport the children’s feeding pump or other medically required equipment. Rather than being stuck in a wheelchair, a WHEE Wagon is a more engaging mode of transportation for the children. The wagons can be used while the children play, are transported from the classroom to the OLE or provide the opportunity to be on eye level with other children. 

The WHEE Wagon program will allow kids to reconnect with the normal everyday world of just being a child, at a time when they may feel cut off from that world due to acute or chronic illness. These WHEE Wagons, could enrich the life of a specific medically fragile child through freedom of mobility and the basic joy of play. The five WHEE Wagons were donated to Irene Wortham, with the belief that a simple wagon ride could potentially touch the lives of ill children.

NC CCHCA Conference 2016 - NC CCHC Certification Pilot

NC CCHC Certification (CCHC-C) project was presented this morning at the annual Association conference. The goal of building the first in the nation Child Care Health Consultant Certification process to address the need for qualified on-site support for health and safety in child care programs in NC was discussed by a panel: Dr. Jonathan Kotch discussed the importance of high quality CCHC services to the health and safety of young children and how North Carolina is leading the way nationally. 

Christina DiSalvo from the North Carolina Partnership for Children talked about the infrastructure in North Carolina that supports CCHCs, including the CCHC Practice Model, the NC Child Care Health and Safety Resource Center and coaching supports, and the state CCHC nurse and Association. 

Debra Torrence from the NC Institute for Child Development Professionals discussed the importance of certification and what certification will mean for Child Care Health Consultants in North Carolina. 

Read more about the Child Care Health Consultant Certification Pilot Project here: http://ncicdp.org/certification-licensure/cchc-c/

Amy Petersen, the chair of the CCHC Association told us more about the actual details of the project and who has been involved so far. 

And Erin Belford talked more about the pilot project and what the benefits of certification will be for CCHCs, including the Rewards and Benefits options: http://ncicdp.org/certification-licensure/eecrewards/ 

Update! Slides from this presentation are now available on the Association's OneDrive.

New Be Active Kids trainers!

The latest Be Active Kids train-the-trainer was held Friday, November 13th in Clyde, NC.

Four Child Care Health Consultants attended the training along with the western region CCHC coach, Theresa Stenersen. Picture above, left to right, are Laurel Marshall from Clay county, Janelle Midgett from Haywood county, Elka Gibbs from Macon county and
Meghan Phillips from Graham county - all part of Region A Partnership for Children.

The training was held by Keelin Schneider and the Be Active Kids Clubhouse Team - Swing, Leap, Dart, Blue and Glide.

 For more information about Be Active Kids, contact Keelin Schneider at keelin AT beactivekids.org

And now from Go NAP SACC's facebook page...

Even with the rain, we had too much fun with the wonderful Terri Walls yesterday. She's been using NAP SACC with child...

Posted by Go NAP SACC on Friday, October 2, 2015

Vaccines save lives!

Vaccines save lives! This was the message shared by Child Care Health Consultant Dorothy Rawleigh on September 24 at the Chatham County Public Library. Rawleigh, who works with the Chatham County Public Health Department, presented a training on Childhood Immunizations to a group of 25 early educators.

Rawleigh dispelled common myths about vaccines and encouraged early educators to work with parents to ensure that children in early care settings are up to date on their shots.

For more information about immunization requirements in NC : http://www.immunize.nc.gov/

CCHCs celebrated!

Two Child Care Health Consultants covering Jackson, Haywood and Swain counties in western North Carolina were celebrated recently by Safe Kids Jackson County for their role in preventing childhood injuries!

Meagan Cagle (far left) and Janelle Midgett (4th from left) finished their CCHC training course this year and are both certified child passenger safety technicians.

Meagan works with child care facilities in Jackson and Swain counties and Janelle works with Haywood county. They are both employed by the Jackson county health department and are funded by Region A Partnership for Children.

Articles about the celebration appeared in the Macon County News and other local papers.

Newest CCHCs in training!

On September 1, the latest cohort started their journey to becoming qualified Child Care Health Consultants when they met at the North Carolina Botanical Garden in Chapel Hill.

Shown here - left to right - is Lisa Harrell from Martin county, Kelly Mendenhall from Alamance county, Natalie Williams from Yadkin county, Elka Gibbs from Macon county. In the back row is Jeannie Reardon, Jen Kozaczek and Mary Cleary representing the NC Child Care Health and Safety Resource Center, Missy Jablonski from Iredell county and Meghan Phillips from Graham county.

Please help give them a warm welcome and wish them much luck on their journey!

Sessions

2015 Annual Child Care Health Consultant Association Conference

The 2015 Child Care Health Consultant Association conference was held on March 24 and 25th at the Friday Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The theme this year was Healthy Child Care: It's Not Magic! Seventy four CCHCs from across North Carolina and even from other states like Maryland and North Dakota attended the conference. The event was sponsored by the NC CCHC Association and the NC Division of Public Health, Children & Youth Branch and supported by the NC Child Care Health and Safety Resource Center. 

Some of the session highlights were:

Session I: What's happening at the NC Division of Child Development and Early Education (SESSION SLIDES) with Lorie Pugh, Regulatory Services Assistant Section Chief. This session featured updates to the Emergency Preparedness and Response rules, which were voted on by the North Carolina Child Care Commission on November 17, 2014 and will take effect June 1, 2015. Read minutes from the Child Care Commission's meeting here. 

North Carolina's CCHCs will play a crucial role in training early educators based on the revised Emergency Preparedness and Response in Child Care training which is slated to open for registration in May 2015. In the training, trainers will receive a trainer’s toolkit with all the materials needed to deliver the in-person training to child care facilities. The training for child care providers will be an in-person two-session training, two hours per class, with an hour of homework to complete between the two classes. 

Session II: Next up was Updates from DHHS Environmental Health Section (SESSION SLIDES CURRENTLY UNAVAILABLE) with David Brown, Surveillance Coordinator with the Department of Health and Human Services Children's Environmental Health Program. 

Session III: Christina DiSalvo, Early Care and Education Program Officer with the NC Partnership for Children spoke next on Strengthening the NC CCHC Infrastructure: The ELC CCHC Project Update.  (SESSION SLIDES)

 

And for Session IV the regional CCHC coaches Sharon Brown, Rhonda Rambeaut and Theresa Stenersen along with Sharon Ware, state child care nurse consultant joined Christina for a panel discussion to answer questions posed by CCHCs across the state and to discuss ways that new tools including the CCHC Model, the NC Health and Safety Assessment can be incorporated into the daily work of the CCHC. 

 We started off Wednesday morning hearing keynote speaker Mike Lanza talk about Neighborhood Play, Everyday. (SESSION SLIDES)

Mike talked about how children hardly play outside on their own in their neighborhoods and how they are suffering in many ways as a result. He described how we can give children a life of neighborhood play, every day. First we looked at how this problem is social in nature and why individual solutions like limiting screen times or providing structured activities are, by themselves, inadequate. He then described many innovative communities - including his own front yard - that have vibrant play cultures for their children. We were provided with a comprehensive set of step-by-step solutions for parents and caregivers. You can read more about Mike's work by visiting his blog at Playborhood.com and reading his book "Playborhood" available at  Amazon. 

The keynote address was followed by a number of breakout sessions: 

I A: Nurturing the Brain through Responsive Relationships (SESSION SLIDES) was presented by Nicola Finch, Natalie Tackitt and Joy Herrera. This presentation defined types of stress and how each affects the developing child's brain and body. 

I B: Glenda Linens of Alamance County Health Department and Tony Geiger with Kids in Parks presented Engaging Child Care Facilities in Community Physical Activity Programs. Glenda presented the Alamance County Physical Activity and Recreation Challenge program (SESSION SLIDES) and Tony Geiger introduced the Kids in Parks program's TRACK Trails (SESSION SLIDES). 

 
I C: Lisa Johnson with the Pediatric Asthma Program and Megan Hoert Hughes with the UNC Center for Environmental Health and Suceptibility presented Understanding the Clinical and Environmental Aspects of Managing Asthma for Children and their Families to provide professionals with the knowledge critical to helping children and their families understand asthma management.


 II A:  Beth Meadows, Field Services Unit Manager with the NC Immunization Branch gave updates in a session called Saving Lives - One Vaccine at a Time. (SESSION SLIDES CURRENTLY UNAVAILABLE) Beth gave an overview of the upcoming 2015 Immunization Law changes, including changes to the Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine requirement.

 

Download more information about what will be required starting on July 1, 2015 by clicking on the images below. (.pdf)

II C:  Ashley Mercer and Latonya Brown gave a presentation called Orange County Wellness at Work which included a worksite wellness toolkit developed in Orange County and how their work can be replicated in a child care setting. 

III A: Next David Brown, Surveillance Coordinator with the Department of Health and Human Services returned to talk about Lead Exposure, Treatment and Remediation in Child Care. 

III B: A Healthy Start for Young Children: How do I Play a Part? was presented by Natasha Bowden of Smart Start of Buncombe County (shown below with Juliana Whitaker of Lincoln County). Natasha is the Shape NC Hub Specialist for the western counties. 

III C: Tiffany Graves, Investigations Supervisor with the DCDEE gave a presentation of Interagency Investigations of Child Abuse and Neglect in Child Care Facilities. 

Stay tuned to this blog for more highlights from the annual conference! And be sure to follow on Twitter and Facebook.

Craven County Child Care Health Consultant Presents at....

the 9th Annual Building Brighter Futures Early Childhood Conference! This conference is hosted by Craven Smart Start in collaboration with Child Care Resource & Referral, as a professional development day for early childhood educators. Terri Walls RN, Child Care Health Consultant and Letha Ricks, Quality Enhancement Coordinator for Craven Smart Start presented Loose Parts: Empowering Children's Creativity, to a full room of 40 early childhood educators.

"Look at what I made....can't I play a little longer?" Those who value the concept of play-based learning joined us to learn about "loose parts". Loose parts are objects or materials that children can move, combine, take apart, control or change in multiple ways while they play. Loose parts are natural or synthetic items that provide endless possibilities with no set of directions. Here are some ideas of loose parts: stones, seashells, boxes, buttons, stumps, rocks, buckets, fabric, sand, seed pods, plastic containers, thread spools, twigs, pine cones, paper towel tubes, yarn, wood, acorns, trays, string, tree cookies, bark, cartons, ribbon, logs, flowers, crates, beads.

In play environments that offer simply fixed play equipment, children have a tendency to take risks (jumping from high places, sliding down the slide backwards) while playing due to the limited choices. When children manipulate their own environment and takes risks, they are less likely to have accidents and get in trouble. Marc Armitage reported a reduction in minor accidents and a general decline in unwanted behavior with the introduction of loose parts in the play area (2009).

Armitage, Mar. 2009. Play Pods in Schools: An Independent Evaluation (2006-2009). United Kingdom: Playpeople.

Terri Walls RN, BSN, CCHC and Letha Ricks, Quality Enhancement Coordinator, both from Craven County Smart Start, presented A Tisket, A Tasket – Fill your Literary Basket at the North Carolina Association for the Education of Young Children conference on September 13, 2014. 

The room was packed full of early educators having fun using music and movement to enhance learning through nursery rhymes. The idea for this year’s presentation was to connect movement with literacy and show the importance of this connection to early learning. 

 

This statement tells it all:

Movement and language are both forms of communication and self-expression. Ideas and feelings expressed in words actually begin in the body… Before you write and speak there is a physical response.

 Minton, S. 2003. Using movement to teach academics: An outline for success. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance 74 (2): 36-40

Western Regional association meeting and a fond farewell to Jackie!

On July 29th, the western regional CCHC association meeting was held at the Mountain Area Health Education Center in Asheville, NC. The meeting was very well attended by region CCHC’s. Chrissy Wolfe of Buncombe County, was elected as chairperson when Linda Weldon stepped down as chairperson after several years of service. (Thank you for all you’ve done, Linda!)

The meeting was also attended by Resource Center staff – Jeannie Reardon, Mary Cleary and Jackie Quirk, who was retiring later this same week. After the meeting, several people took Jackie out to lunch to celebrate her retirement and say “goodbye” though she did promise to come to next year’s conference!