In today’s busy office, it can be difficult to find the time to locate appropriate resources for issues related to behavior, development or learning. Parents turn to you for direction and advice for issues ranging from parenting support and education to discipline and behavior management. Families often expect you to have the answers at your fingertips. Additionally, helping families find the most appropriate resource may be further complicated by individual agency and program criteria regarding city of residence, income level, or language among other factors.
Help Me Grow, a free service for you and your families, is supported by First 5 Orange County and can make the referral process easier for you, your staff and the families in your practice.
Help Me Grow staff can assist you by locating the appropriate, non-medical services that meet the individualized needs of your patients from Birth through age 8 and their families. When a family is referred to Help Me Grow, they speak directly with a Child Development Care Coordinator who has access to the most current resources in Orange County. When Help Me Grow refers families to services, a letter detailing the referrals is provided to the family and sent to your office for the child’s medical records. Keeping you informed of the referrals made to your patients is a priority for us. Care coordination is provided to support linkage to the referral and an outcome letter is sent to you upon connection.
Examples of common referrals:
- Developmental screening using a norm referenced tool
- Mental Health or Social /Emotional screening
- California Early Start (Regional Center)
- School district programs
- Family Resource Centers
- In-home parent training
- Parenting classes & parent support groups
- Child & parent participation programs
- Early literacy programs
- Childhood nutrition resources
- Child care inclusion support
- Enrichment programs
- Advocacy/Parent empowerment