HFA sites adapted quickly to provide services in the midst of COVID-19

Staff are adjusting quickly to virtual visits…

…and parents are thankful that they are still able to have their visits during this time. They are feeling the additional stress and appreciate the continued support and information from their home visitor.

We have mailed families curriculum and other information…

…and we are conducting virtual visits with them at this time.  Prior to closing our office we made a mad dash delivering diapers and food to many of our families.

One mom needed help to access Medicaid.

She has internet so we worked out a plan so I could help her by using video chat.  This was a great comfort to her.

We are working hard from our homes…

…to connect with our families via telehealth and calls. We are assessing the immediate needs and helping the families work through these issues. We actually are able to deliver some necessary items with a no contact tactic. Items such as diapers, formulas, cleaning supplies and even food is becoming available, but all of our families don’t have transportation.

I had one Mom express after our virtual visit…

“thank you, I feel so much better after talking and seeing you via FaceTime”.

Our staff have been very creative…

…in what materials to get to the families. They are creating packets of educational materials for the parents, referral/resource information as well as activity ideas and supplies for the parents to do with their children. They are in more frequent contact with families during this time than they were before. Even those on level 3 & 2 have been contacted weekly to provide supports.

Healthy Families still continuing to support our families.

We rise above all else and keep the prevention of child abuse going when it can be more prevalent now than any time. I’m so thankful to be able to keep the consistency going with our families. This has proven that they still need this and want this even during a crisis.

What gives me hope and inspiration is…

…knowing that the work that I’m doing and our program is helping families in need during an unprecedented public health crisis. The feedback that our program receives every day form the families we contact, give me the motivation to continue helping those in need.

Staff are doing their best to be there for their families, now more than ever…

…spending more time than ever before connecting with them. Supervisors are doing their best to be there for staff, now more than ever before, spending more time providing reflective supervision and safe spaces for staff. They are doing this while trying to learn new ways of continuing visits or assessments and supervision.

Home visitors helped identify and resolve a deficiency…

…in the policy of a homeless shelter for residents stricken by sudden illness. Through partnerships with agencies like Medical Legal Partnership this home visiting program’s advocacy efforts led to a statewide change in implementation policy for shelters statewide.

I was able to figure out how…

…to help a client complete his re-certification for SNAP form. Primary language is Karen so he doesn’t understand the form. He sent me pics of the forms and I edited it by adding the information needed and sent it back to him via text.

I had to help a family pay their medical bills…

…and for some reason Medicaid kept rejecting the claim, so my family, Medicaid, my supervisor, and myself were all on the line trying to figure it out (using an interpreter). It took a while, but it felt great afterwards.

As I talked to my families all of them expressed feelings of calmness…

…and often said things like they are trying to focus on what they do have. I also heard many thank you’s this past week which made me realize how important it is to be empathetic as well as how a simple check-in can mean more than I thought it did. I also have learned to ask families what they can do to stay present and what they are already doing in terms of self-care. Serving families virtually this past week has taught me the importance of staying connected to the people you care about regularly but especially during challenging times.

One mom was terrified of COVID-19.

We talked a few days in a row. One of those calls was solely because she could not find a thermometer anywhere where she lived. No one in her house was ill, it was the sheer terror of not having it if she needed it. I felt helpless, I travel over an hour to see this family but of course we aren’t doing in-home visits at this point. I remembered I had some grooming kits stashed away and looked to see if one might have a thermometer and it did. I called mom and I told her I would be sending her a thermometer. The pure gratitude in mom’s voice was enough to let me know she was ok. Mom was happy and able to calm down a little though. That was success for that moment in uncertain times.

Some of the stressors we are witnessing with our families…

…lack of income, no daycare, loneliness from isolation and trying to remain present and resilient for their children all while being nurturing toward their children. I’ve sadly witnessed families tell me their therapy and support groups have closed the doors and offered no other help aside crisis line numbers. Wow! But here is Healthy Families still continuing to support our families. We rise above all else and keep the prevention of child abuse going when it can be more prevalent now than any time. I’m so thankful to be able to keep the consistency going with our families. This has proven that they still need this and want this even during a crisis.

But we kept hope alive.