Based on SFY2025 MCH Aid-to-Local applications received 54 of 56 grantees (96%) plan to provide services to the Perinatal/Infant population. As related to each objective within Priority 2:

• 51 of 56 grantees (91%) plan to provide breastfeeding supports and education
• 48 of 56 grantees (86%) plan to provide safe sleep promotion/initiatives
• 30 of 56 grantees (54%) plan to provide cross-section initiatives focusing on improving maternal and infant health outcomes
• 43 of 56 grantees (77%) plan to provide MCH universal home visiting

Breastfeeding Initiatives 

Objective 2.1: Promote and support cross-sector breastfeeding policies, practices, and environments to increase exclusive breastfeeding rates at 6 months. 

Kansas Breastfeeding Infrastructure: While Kansas breastfeeding initiation (90.5%, 2022 Annual Summary of Vital Statistics) exceeds the national average, 6-month exclusivity rates (22.2%, National Immunization Survey, children born 2020) fall far below the national average and the Health People 2030 goals of 42.4% exclusive breastfeeding through 6 months. This requires continued focus on increasing families’ access to strong community breastfeeding education, supports, and practices. In order to promote and support cross-sector breastfeeding policies, practices, and environments to increase breastfeeding duration and exclusivity, Title V will continue our strong partnership with the Kansas Breastfeeding Coalition (KBC) to support existing effective strategies (e.g., Business Case for Breastfeeding, Communities Supporting Breastfeeding, Breastfeeding Welcome Here) and to broaden and strengthen the establishment of local breastfeeding coalitions.

Breastfeeding initiatives should be available to all populations, however Title V is specifically interested in removing barriers and addressing racial disparities noted in state-level breastfeeding data, such as among the non-Hispanic Black population. While much work has been started with this focus, particularly through contracted KBC supported projects, continuation and advancement of these efforts will be a focus for FY25. Examples of such efforts include:  

• Increasing access to lactation support by African American providers such as breastfeeding peer counselors, doulas, International Board-Certified Lactation Consultants, and Certified Lactation Counselors that represent high-risk populations. 
• Supporting the implementation and growth of community-centered, culturally relevant mother-to-mother, father, and grandparent breastfeeding support clubs for African Americans. 
• Broadening the establishment of breastfeeding coalitions for African Americans that connect health care providers and the community to local information and resources. 

MCH-WIC-KBC-Becoming a Mom (BaM) Program Collaboration: Assuring consistent, repeat, messaging around the benefits of breastfeeding (initiation and exclusivity) to both mothers and infants (as well as where/how to access breastfeeding support) across all MCH programs and services is a goal of Kansas Title V. To achieve this goal, collaboration must occur among the various programs. Training opportunities, curriculum content and other resources must be shared and promoted across programs. Efforts in this area have been very successful over the past several years, and Title V is committed to continuing this work in FY25. Breastfeeding curriculum, presentations, lesson and activity plans, as well as other resources originally developed for the BaM group prenatal education program, will continue to be adapted and shared for implementation in other settings and with disparity populations. Special focus will be given to developing a version of these resources for low-literacy and immigrant populations. Integration efforts between BaM, WIC, and MCH programs such as home visiting, Teen Pregnancy Targeted Case Management and Pregnancy Maintenance Initiative will continue to be a focus of the Perinatal/Infant (P/I) Health Consultant workplan in FY25. Accessibility of breastfeeding education and support will be a primary component of these efforts.

Title V and KBC partnership will continue to focus on improving access to breastfeeding education for providers and MCH workforce development. Efforts will include continued support of the Childcare Provider Training, local MCH staff focused webinars and training opportunities, as well as many other more broadly focused training opportunities. Title V encourages and supports staff participation in a variety of breastfeeding education courses. It is important to meet MCH staff where they are and provide information on all the options for breastfeeding education including 1, 3, or 5-day courses. Tools such as the Massachusetts Breastfeeding Coalition’s Landscape of Breastfeeding Support which provides staff with the various certification programs and the Lactation Support Provider Training Directory from the U.S. Breastfeeding Committee are included in a comprehensive Breastfeeding Integration Toolkit which will continue to be enhanced and promoted for use by providers across programs and services.

Local MCH Agencies: The following are examples are local MCH grantee agencies plans toward Objective 2.1 during the plan period.

• CareArc will continue to educate prenatal and postpartum patients on the benefits of breastfeeding. Our Women's Health provider is attending our weekly breastfeeding meetings which can be attended by any breastfeeding patient in the community. She is also a certified lactation consultant and is able to schedule appointments with patients to address any specific breastfeeding needs and offer one on one support. Our infant population hasn't been large in the past so our numbers on this goal can vary widely with even one patient difference. We hope with continued marketing and retention of staff offering more services that we will see these numbers continue to rise.
• Linn County Health Department will expand and enhance the breastfeeding supports and education. During the BAM classes there is a session on breastfeeding and the Breastfeeding Peer Counselor (BFPC) will educate those women. Also, by being a part of the breastfeeding session of BAM it will also lead to the mothers that have been educated to feel comfortable to follow up if they are having trouble with their baby breastfeeding after delivery. We will continue to enhance and grow our Community Baby Shower, which always promotes and educates on breastfeeding. We will also continue to expand and promote breastfeeding services, support, and education through outreach activities. The current BFPC is going to become a Designated Breastfeeding Expert and one of our nurses is going to become a BFPC so we will have the expertise of two different supports for our breastfeeding moms.
• Mitchell County Health Department will enhance and expand our breastfeeding support and education and will take the next step by expanding opportunities for one-on-one visits. Currently, our Maternal Child Health Certified Lactation Counselor (CLC) offers breastfeeding support through scheduled client appointments. We are beginning the process of collaborating with WIC within the health department to offer walk-in breastfeeding clinics.

Safe Sleep Initiatives 

Objective 2.2: Promote and support safe sleep practices and cross-sector initiatives to reduce the sudden unexplained infant death (SUID) rate. 

KIDS Network Infrastructure & Family Support: KDHE will continue to contract with the Kansas Infant Death and SIDS (KIDS) Network using Children’s Cabinet and Trust Fund - Children’s Initiative dollars to promote and provide a statewide support system to help families, relatives, friends, caregivers and all others who are affected by the sudden death of an infant based on the individual or family needs. They will conduct safe sleep education and bereavement services statewide. The KIDS Network serves individuals or organizations who strive to reduce the risk of infant death or sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) by providing supportive services, community education, professional training and supporting associated research. 

The KIDS Network will ensure outreach, education, and ongoing support for pregnant women (especially underserved populations) and promote public-private partnerships. Title V will work with the KIDS Network to promote safe sleep and reduce infant death by providing culturally tailored safe sleep resources, toolkits, educational materials, and trainings for home visitors, health care providers and childcare providers with focus on a consistent messaging. 

To promote and support safe sleep practices and cross-sector initiatives to reduce the sudden unexpected infant death (SUID) rate, Title V will continue to fund the strong partnership with the Kansas Infant Death and SIDS (KIDS) Network through organizational infrastructure support and strengthen/enhance the KIDS Network Safe Sleep  Certification Project which includes: Safe Sleep Instructor (SSI) Train-the-Trainer, Safe Sleep training for professionals and caregivers; Safe Sleep Community Baby Showers and Crib Clinics; Cribs for KIDS Safe Sleep Hospital Certification Program; and Safe Sleep Star Outpatient Certification Program. Program components use implementation science strategies that include didactics, PowerPoint presentations, hands-on demonstrations, a workbook with safe sleep educational activities, a World Café format is used in small group settings to address myths, barriers, infant products and best practices, Q&A sessions and pre/post-test evaluations as well as other resources originally developed by the KIDS Network to promote a consistent safe sleep message. Materials are updated and customized to meet the needs of diverse populations, including those with disparate backgrounds, low literacy levels, and visual impairments. 

The Network will accomplish the above by providing semi-annual train-the-trainer classes, quarterly technical assistance Webinars, bi-monthly virtual office hours, advanced training opportunities for seasoned certified SSIs, and annual reporting requirements for recertification of all program models. During the COVID-19 pandemic and recovery period, little traction was made in expanding the Cribs for KIDS Safe Sleep Hospital Certification Program and Safe Sleep Star Outpatient Certification Program models throughout the state. Reenergizing these efforts will be an ongoing focus during FY25. 

MCH-KIDS Network-BaM-KPCC Collaboration: While our efforts to provide training opportunities, curriculum content and other resources across programs to ensure message consistency have been very successful over the past several years, Title V is committed to continuing this work in FY25. Safe sleep curriculum, presentations, lesson and activity plans, as well as other resources originally developed for the BaM group prenatal education program, will continue to be adapted and shared for implementation in a variety of settings and with diverse populations. Special focus will be given to developing a version of these resources for low-literacy and immigrant populations. Integration efforts between BaM and MCH programs such as home visiting, Teen Pregnancy Targeted Case Management (TPTCM) and Pregnancy Maintenance Initiative (PMI) will be a focus of the Perinatal/Infant (P/I) Health Consultant workplan in FY2025. Safe sleep education and support will be a primary component of these efforts. Additionally, support will be provided to local KPCCs to strengthen provider and birth facility partnerships aimed at engaging these entities in safe sleep initiatives such as the Safe Sleep Hospital Certification Program and Safe Sleep Star Certification Program.

Local MCH Agencies: The following are examples are local MCH grantee agencies plans toward Objective 2.2 during the plan period.

• Marshall County Health Department will continue to enhance this education in collaboration with WIC through our visualization of safe sleep posters and handouts as well as discussions with prenatal and postnatal families. BAM and Universal Home Visitor are also integral in the education opportunities in which discuss the infant anatomy and rationales behind safe sleep by putting babies on their "Back to Sleep". We provide sleep sacks after completion of BAM, as well as distribution with UHV visits to promote safe sleeping habits. Educational tool from NIH is also distributed as a visual and discussed.
• Pottawatomie County Health Department will continue to conduct two Community Baby Showers with Safe Sleep demonstrations following the Kansas Infant Death and SIDS (KIDS) Network Safe Sleep Program.
• Seward County Health Department will provide safe sleep to all women in the MCH program. When new clients come in for a pregnancy test and the results are positive, they are immediately referred to a home visitor where they will receive their initial education of the importance of Safe Sleep. To enhance their knowledge, they are offered Becoming a Mom (BaM) prenatal classes where they will be taught in depth information on safe sleep. A demonstration of how a Pak and Play should be set up and the importance of having a clutter free Pak and Play is provided. Discussion among the instructors and participants will improve the understanding of those attending the classes. Pak and Plays are kept on hand to provide to underserved families voicing they don't have the funds to purchase a crib or Pak and Play.
• Sheridan County Health Department will continue to highlight safe sleep through social media post each week during October which is the safe sleep awareness month, but we will increase the number of posts throughout the rest of the year to at least one safe sleep post per month. The health department will continue to offer safe sleep training through the health department, as well as offer safe sleep training at community baby showers, health fairs, and other similar events. The Safe Sleep Instructor will also train first responders on safe sleep practices so that they are better equipped to identify concerns as they respond to other emergencies. Having a consistent message from multiple sources is important to reinforce the safe sleep message.

Kansas Perinatal Quality Collaborative Initiatives 

Objective 2.3: Implement at least two quality cross-sector initiatives focused on improving maternal, perinatal, and infant health in partnership with the Kansas Perinatal Quality Collaborative (KPQC). 

Role of State MMRCs & PQCs: State Perinatal Quality Collaboratives (PQCs) and Maternal Mortality Review Committees (MMRCs) function to improve maternal and perinatal health and believe that investing in the mother’s health leads to healthier birth/pregnancy outcomes. Roles are different but complementary.  

• PQCs: Focus on efforts during the maternal and perinatal periods intended to improve birth outcomes and strengthen perinatal systems of care for mothers and infants.  
• MMRCs: Focus on reviewing maternal and pregnancy-associated deaths (pregnancy through one year after delivery) to identify gaps in health services and make actionable recommendations to prevent future deaths, improving maternal and perinatal health.  

As convener of the Kansas PQC and MMRC, KDHE Title V brings together the work of both entities to translate findings and recommendations to action, in partnership with other state organizations, such as American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), March of Dimes, Kansas Hospital Association (KHA), and others. As the KMMRC focuses on identifying gaps in health services and making actionable recommendations to prevent future deaths, the KPQC focuses on acting on these recommendations by using data-driven, evidence-based practice and quality improvement processes (e.g., Patient Safety Bundles). This is intended to improve birth outcomes and strengthen perinatal systems of care for mothers and infants. The Title V State Action Plan aligns with collaborative efforts underway for the Kansas Perinatal Quality Collaborative (KPQC). The KPQC is a panel of experts working to improve the quality of care for mothers and infants, affecting measurable improvements in statewide health care and health outcomes. 

KPQC & MMRC Collaborative Efforts – Data to Action:  The KPQC kicked off implementation of the Fourth Trimester Initiative (FTI), in FY21 and will finalize efforts during FY25. FTI is a maternal health quality initiative aimed at decreasing maternal morbidity and mortality. Data from KDHE Vital Statistics and the Kansas Maternal Mortality Review Committee (KMMRC) reveal that targeted assessment and intentional intervention in the postpartum period should be the primary care team activities to improve maternal health outcomes. FTI was designed to be a cutting-edge approach to study and improve the experience of mothers and families in Kansas. FTI focuses on chronic disease, behavioral health (including mental health and substance use disorder), breastfeeding, health equity, care coordination and access to care.

Implementation of the FTI initiative positioned Kansas to enroll in the Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health (AIM) Postpartum Discharge Transition (PPDT) bundle in October 2021. AIM is a national, data-driven initiative based on proven implementation approaches to improving maternal safety and outcomes in the country. AIM works through state teams and health systems to align national, state, and hospital level efforts to improve maternal and perinatal health outcomes. States that enroll in AIM receive access to 8 Core AIM “Patient Safety Bundles,” patient safety tools, and the “AIM Community of States. Participating in the PPDT bundle has helped guide Kansas in implementation of FTI, including tracking progress measures and data collection, and leverage existing MCH investments around the KPCC model.

The KMMRC data shows hypertensive conditions in pregnancy and the postpartum period have been determined to be a significant contributing factor to maternal morbidity and mortality in Kansas. In response, existing efforts around the Maternal Warning Signs (MWS) statewide initiative and online toolkit, will be expanded to include Perinatal Hypertension Patient Education Guides for blood pressure monitoring in the perinatal period. Guides include a call to action for home blood pressure monitoring, preeclampsia and postpartum preeclampsia overview, guidance on self-measured blood pressure cuff selection, validated cuff selection, the Preeclampsia Foundation’s Check-Know-Share handout, Preeclampsia Foundation's Blood Pressure Monitoring Instructions and Log, and the March of Dimes' Health Action Sheet on Low-Dose Aspirin. These materials will be distributed to all FTI participating facilities to be included (as appropriate) as part of MWS patient discharge education, as well as to all MCH, BaM, TPTCM, PMI, MIECHV, Title X and WIC programs to supplement current MWS education efforts.

To address the KMMRC recommendations for improved care coordination and linkage to services for perinatal persons, especially during the postpartum period, the KPQC and KDHE Title V is helping to build collaborations between FTI facilities and their local Title V services including MCH Universal Home Visiting programs, Title X, WIC, MIECHV, CHW and Doula programs.  Kansas is leading the way for establishing and piloting this “new” postpartum model of care. This work will continue through FY25.

In FY25, the KPQC will continue to implement and expand birth equity training using the Kansas Birth Equity Network (KBEN) curriculum. This training includes implicit bias and antiracism training and was developed by University of Kansas. In partnership with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas Healthy Blue Initiatives, KBEN training seats have been purchased and offered to all participating FTI birth facilities and centers. Resources are being developed to encourage policy change in the facilities and to ensure that birth equity training will be continued for all staff. Additionally, in FY25 the KPQC will partner with the Preeclampsia Foundation’s MoMMA’s Voices to offer three webinars featuring MoMMA’s Voices Patient Family Partners personal stories, the role and responsibility that birth facility staff and healthcare providers play in ensuring birth equity at their facility, and the importance of listening and centering the birthing person at the heart of all healthcare related decisions. 

Additional public health campaigns will be implemented targeting causes of deaths found to be “pregnancy-associated, but not related.” KPQC/KMMRC will continue to promote and incorporate screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) across MCH programming and perinatal service providers. The SBIRT process will be used as a comprehensive, integrated, public health approach for the early identification and intervention of MCH patients exhibiting health risk behaviors, such as substance use and mental health. Promotional efforts will also include integration of screening and education on IPV, utilizing resources from the Futures Without Violence Initiative.  

Title V, Kansas Connecting Communities (KCC), and KPQC staff will continue to develop a recognition program for Kansas communities who are actively engaged in MWS and FTI initiatives. This recognition program will highlight and celebrate those communities actively engaged in addressing perinatal mental health and substance use, MWS and POST-BIRTH awareness and education, along with other key maternal health initiatives, in both the public health/community (outpatient) and birth facility (in patient) settings.  

The KMMRC’s work and recommendations continuously guide the KPQC and MCH activities and initiatives. Title V will continue to advocate for policy changes, develop action alerts/bulletins, and identify and develop public and patient education initiatives for statewide implementation in response to data/findings.
 

Birth Defects Surveillance (BDS):  In FY 25, MCH staff will continue verifying core, recommended, external defects, and referrals to internal and external partner groups.

At a minimum, all verified core disorders will be referred to internal and external partner groups such as the Kansas Special Health Care Needs, Kansas Early Childhood Developmental Services, March of Dimes, Ronald McDonald House Charities and other specialty healthcare clinics as related/needed for the reported birth defect. These partners will work to engage the families and children affected by birth defects and ensure they have the proper education, outreach, and service navigation to effectively care for themselves and their children.  

Education material relevant to core, recommended, and extended birth defects will continue to be created by the Kansas Birth Defects Coordinator in collaboration with the Education and Outreach Coordinator. These materials are not yet ready for distribution to families upon verification of the birth defect via traditional mail but this is the goal for FY25. Current outreach efforts for birth defects will continue to be delivered to subscribers of the Newborn Screening newsletter. Social media campaigns on specific topics such as Birth Defects Awareness Month (BDAM) and World Birth Defects Awareness Day, began in early 2024 and will continue throughout FY25 to include Folic Acid Awareness Week (FAAW) among others with the goal of bringing attention to resources and education provided by the state and other national organizations.  

Local MCH Agencies: The following are examples are local MCH grantee agencies plans toward Objective 2.3 during the plan period.

• Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas will screen all perinatal and expectant women for any risk factors that would result in a negative outcome for themselves and/or their newborn to improve the quality of the care we deliver. Bright Futures is the foundation of our pediatric care, and our perinatal, prenatal, obstetrical and post-partum protocols are based on the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Academy of Family Physicians guidelines.
• Delivering Change During will enhance implementation of risk screenings for clients, education about preterm labor, Count the Kicks, and Maternal Warning Signs through continued education, support and collaboration with Stormont Vail Flint Hills, a 4th Trimester Site utilizing the AIM bundle. Beginning with initial enrollment, Delivering Change Navigators/Universal Home Visitor implement risk screenings for each client to assess their ongoing social needs. Delivering Change utilizes the Social Determinants of Health screening to ascertain what clients need, such as housing, food, mental health, insurance, etc., which can all affect a client’s prenatal and postpartum health. During pregnancy, Navigators/Universal Home Visitors provide education to clients regarding preterm labor, maternal warning signs and Count the Kicks. Preterm Labor education is given to each prenatal client along with utilizing the KPCC’s tool Preterm Labor magnets. Beginning at 28 weeks, Navigators begin providing direct education about Count the Kicks, encouraging each client to utilize Count the Kicks tools and applications. Maternal Warning Signs education is also provided to clients beginning in pregnancy, providing clients again with KPCC’s tool Maternal Warning Signs Magnet. Maternal Warning Sign education is also provided to clients postpartum, ensuring that clients understand the signs and symptoms of Maternal Warning Signs through the first year after childbirth. The post-birth “Mom Card”, created by Delivering Change and utilized by Stormont Vail Flint Hills 4th Trimester site, assists postpartum women with recognizing maternal warning signs and their upcoming postpartum appointments, to include breastfeeding appointments with Delivering Change Breastfeeding Clinic. Delivering Change also coordinates with Stormont Vail Flint Hills OB/GYN and Birthplace to screen for PMADs both prenatal and postpartum.  These screening results are directly shared with Delivering Change Navigators who follow up with clients to ensure that services are offered and provided.
• Miami County Health Department will continue to provide the Post Birth Warning Signs/Urgent Maternal Warning Signs education to patients enrolled in our Home Visiting Program. We recently started conducting MCH home visits during the patient's scheduled WIC appointment. We created an educational curriculum for our home visits that provides universal education to the patient and family based on what "visit category" they fall in. Each "visit category" has different educational components, but is universal, as it is provided to every individual seen for a home visit during a certain time frame. Patients will be provided with maternal warning sign education during the third trimester visit, and during the newborn/postpartum visit. The MCH Home Visitor will screen patient's for substance use using the Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST), and can provide appropriate referrals based on the patient's results and needs.

MCH Universal Home Visiting Initiatives 

Objective 2.4: Increase the proportion of pregnant and postpartum women receiving MCH Universal Home Visiting services.

Home Visiting Workforce Training: During FY25, the Bureau of Family Health will again host the Kansas Home Visiting Conference. Conference planning is currently underway. This conference is open to all Kansas Home Visiting staff free of charge. The conference will include breakout session and keynote speakers on topics of interest to MCH home visitors. Some potential topics of interest include home visitor safety and DAISEY data entry and reports. The other part of the conference will include regional breakout groups for MCH home visitors to discuss challenges, successes, and opportunities for collaboration.

Home Visiting Expansion: KDHE Bureau of Family Health will continue to award funding for universal home visiting expansion during the plan year. This funding will support home visiting expansion in multiple counties throughout the state.

Other Perinatal/Infant Health Initiatives 

Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS): In FY25 KS PRAMS will continue data collection, including questions from the Opioid Supplement which will continue through all 2024 births. Kansas PRAMS changed their mailing schedule in 2023. With the launching of the web survey in June 2023, the third PRAMS survey mailing was dropped and is planned to continue in this manner. PRAMS will also continue to integrate strategies for promoting the survey/questionnaire to hard-to-reach populations (such as low-income minority mothers). Finally, KS PRAMS plans to strengthen their ties with MCH partners across the state to ensure that they have the data they need to improve the health of mothers and babies in Kansas. 

The Title V Director, MCH Epidemiologist, and primary team have been actively engaged in the PRAMS work since before launch and will continue to be closely involved over the next year. Title V staff meet with the PRAMS coordinator and data manager regularly to review and discuss data, assist with media questions and interviews related to the PRAMS reports and consider revisions to the next Questionnaire. The Kansas MCH Council meetings will continue to involve PRAMS updates, sharing of data and stories/input from mothers, and requests for more information. The Women/Maternal and Perinatal/Infant workgroups from the Council will continue to serve in an advisory capacity for PRAMS. Perinatal/Infant Health Consultants will continue to work closely with the PRAMS/MCH Epidemiologist to incorporate PRAMS data into Action Alerts related to applicable Awareness Month and Health Equity topics that are shared with local MCH grantees and partner networks for promotion widely across the state. 

The BaM evaluation team within Kansas Title V will conduct deeper dives of BaM program data, comparing outcomes from BaM participants to outcomes from the state’s vital statistics and PRAMS data. These efforts will include: 

• Data on infant sleep position and sleep environment from participants completing the program in 2023 will be compared to the most recent PRAMS data concerning these outcomes. 
• BaM program data will again be linked to birth certificate data, so that birth outcomes and risk factors from the birth certificate can be compared between births to participants completing the BaM program, and births to all other Kansas residents.  
• Once sample size is large enough (with multiple years of linked birth certificate-BaM program data), the BaM evaluation team plans to subsequently link the linked BaM-birth data to the state’s PRAMS data. This will allow Kansas MCH to compare PRAMS’ infant sleep data between BaM participants and all other Kansas residents delivering a live infant in the state.

Local MCH Agencies: The following are examples are local MCH grantee agencies plans toward Objective 2.4 during the plan period.

• Greeley County Health Department will enhance the Maternal Child Health Universal Home Visiting program. The home visitor will develop an action plan aimed at improving her effectiveness as a home visitor. Recognizing the importance of organization and continuity in visits, we will start by scheduling dedicated time on the calendar to identify families in the community who could benefit from home visiting services. During these scheduled sessions, we will create a standardized template for taking comprehensive notes during visits, ensuring that observations, concerns, and goals for each family are clearly documented. She aims to address challenges with note decipherability and recall by refining her note-taking approach. The home visitor will proactively gather information from families about specific areas of interest or challenges they wish to address during visits. This personalized approach will enable her to tailor each interaction to meet the unique needs of the families she serves, starting with the initial scheduling call.
• Labette County Health Department will provide families with information on the Home Visiting Program during WIC visits and when receiving other health department services. Information will also be available in the lobby of the health department. Home visitation services will be offered to pregnant and postpartum women (up to 12 months after delivery). Services will include education on prenatal & postpartum care, infant care, immunizations, and various other topics regarding pregnant/postpartum women and infants. MCH staff will continue to serve in local coalition groups to share information and resources. Staff will continue to participate in community events including the Community Baby Shower to provide education/resources to area families.
• Sumner County Health Department will continue to make home visits where we will conduct the Ages & Stages Questionnaire (ASQ)-3. We will be able to score and refer families of children with positive ASQ results to the local Kansas Early Childhood Developmental Services (Part C) organization.  Additionally, we will promote the 1-800-CHILDREN helpline resource directory. To increase referrals, we will continue to increase awareness about the importance of home visiting by posting on social media, visiting provider offices, hosting a community baby shower, and working with our WIC program.