Florida State Profile
- Profile overview
- CCHC facts
- Demographics
- Contacts
- Licensing: Child care health consultants (CCHCs) are mandated by child care licensing regulations for Centers for the Mildly Ill only. Currently, there are no such licensed centers in the state.
- Funding: Funding is provided by community Early Learning Coalitions (ELCs) under the Agency for Workforce Innovation/Office of Early Learning.
- Auspices: In Florida, there are thirty-one community-based ELCs that act as the employer entities for CCHCs.
- CCHC Role: The role of CCHCs within the state is to provide consultation on health and safety in early care and education (ECE) settings.
- CCHC Training: Training is provided in the state by national and local experts on child development. In addition, each local ELC determines the training requirements of the CCHCs within their locality.
History and Development
The Children’s Forum, a non-profit organization in Tallahassee, was a recipient of a Healthy Child Care America (HCCA) grant. As a result, the state was able to build its cadre of CCHCs and provide training through the National Training Institute for Child Care Health Consultants (NTI). When the HCCA grant was discontinued, the CCHC network continued to evolve, and progress was facilitated by a statewide training and networking meeting for individuals working with children and families (CCHCs, child care providers, pediatricians, and therapists). This was accomplished through a partnership with the University of South Florida, The Mailman Center for Child Development, and Miami Children’s Hospital. Since that time, efforts have continued with the Early Childhood Comprehensive System (ECCS) grant program which has allowed for perpetuation of CCHC activities within the state.
Challenges and Lessons Learned
- Buy–in and Funding: In the preliminary stages of the CCHC initiative, early champions believed that state legislation was imminent. However, legislation did not occur, largely due to an inability to secure funding for the initiative and thus demonstrate its value. This experience emphasized the necessity of obtaining buy–in from decision–makers at the state and national level in addition to the local level.
- Building and Sustaining a Statewide Network: The value and subsequent impact of bringing Florida’s CCHCs together to build consultation skills and their knowledge base in areas relevant to child care health consultation was underestimated, and only one training event was held. However, a more successful venue in the recent past has been three consecutive years of two-day trainings on popular child health topics which has since been recognized as a useful avenue to aid in building sustainability and raising awareness of the value of CCHCs.
- Diverse Service Areas: Communities within the state differ demographically and geographically. This has presented unique but sometimes challenging opportunities to provide tailored, culturally–appropriate services. Additionally, community funding sources are lacking due to the absence of large industry or benefactors.
Ingredients for Success
- Collaborations: In implementing the CCHC initiative, Florida has found broad–based collaborations with other organizations within the state that are committed to health and safety to be invaluable. Partners include hospitals, private non–profits, early learning coalitions and a number of public agencies.
- Community Buy–in: Florida has experienced a significant amount of buy–in at the community level. Educators have encouraged local practices that demonstrate a commitment to health and safety, and school nurses have been significantly involved in local CCHC initiatives.
Moving Forward
- Pilot Projects: Florida plans to continue with ECCS which will fund several CCHC pilot projects and perpetuate CCHC activities statewide.
- Training: The Department of Health (DOH) plans to continue to provide statewide training and professional development opportunities for CCHCs.
Information as of August 2007
