MCH Block Grant FY22 Application & FY20 Report
 

Priority Need: Developmental Delays
 

NPM-6: Percent of children, ages 9 through 35 months, who received a developmental screening using a parent-completed screening tool in the past year.
 

Annual Plan FY22:
 

#1: Assist Local Health Departments (LHDs) with reaching their tiered ASQ goals: The Early Childhood Utah Program (ECU) will continue to provide support to the LHDs on their work towards tiered goals. Support will include ongoing ASQ Online training, promoting developmental health resources and materials for integrating ASQ Online use into regular programing practices. ECU will provide ASQ Online Enterprise Account enrollment and technical support to all LHDs as needed and will attend the LHD quarterly Nursing Director’s meetings to track updates on progress towards tiered goals and to provide additional support and training. ECU will seek additional opportunities to provide resources and information on ASQ when they are appropriate and become available, e.g. webinar training and new materials. Additionally, ECU will encourage LHDs/Nursing Directors to participate in the ECU Advisory Council to help meet the tiered goals listed below.
 

Tier 1: ASQ Online Training and Promotion

• Promote ASQ Online training and the use of ASQ Online screening with community based organizations
• Attend ECU Advisory Council meetings 

   
 Tier 2: ASQ Trained and Ready to Use ASQ

• Conduct ASQ Online screens with clients through the WIC, Home Visiting, Early Intervention or other LHD programs.

     
Tier 3: Advanced ASQ Use

• Establish and implement a schedule to complete screens at 6, 12, 18 and 25 months; along with 3, 4 and 5 years of age.
• Integrate billing insurance into the system, i.e. determine if codes 96110 and 96127 can be utilized by the LHD to bill for developmental screens.

#2: Expand ASQ Online enrollment opportunities to medical providers: ECU will continue outreach to community health clinics and pediatric providers in all areas of the state in order to garner interest in utilizing the UDOH ASQ Online screening tools in their practice. Outreach includes training on ASQ Online, Enterprise Account enrollment, support, information and ongoing TA. Currently we recruit providers from quarterly ECU meetings and through ongoing collaborations with community leaders and programs. 

#3: Early Childhood Systems Work: ECU will continue to serve as staff to the Early Childhood Utah Advisory Council in order to coordinate statewide early childhood activities with multi-sector engagement. The ECU Advisory Council provides recommendations from five subcommittees (Promoting Health and Access to Medical Homes; Early Care and Education; Data and Research; Social, Emotional and Mental Health; Parent Engagement, Support and Education) to the Governor’s Commission on Early Childhood. 

#4: Early Childhood Integrated Data Portal: Early Childhood Utah will continue to develop and enhance data relationships and data tools that are imperative to Early Childhood Systems work. Our Early Childhood Integrated Data System will unveil the ability to filter our under-six service summary and ASQ reports by county, age, gender and race/ethnicity. Additionally, ECIDS will release Program Engagement reports that speak to the level of which a family/child attended or engaged in services. This data can be used by programs such as Home Visiting, Early Head Start/Head Start, IDEA Part C and WIC to assess the dosage of services that families/children receive. This will also be critical data to share with the state’s P-20 longitudinal data system in order to accurately assess the effectiveness of interventions offered and received.

Priority Need: Dental Care

NPM-13.2: Percent of children, ages 1 through 17, who had a preventive dental visit in the past year.
 

Annual Plan FY22:
 

In FY22, the Oral Health Program (OHP) plans to continue to collaborate with Medicaid to increase the number of children who receive preventive dental visits and receive needed dental treatments. The State Dental Director (SDD) will continue to work with the dental group with Utah Medicaid.

The SDD will continue to work with the Utah Dental Association (UDA) to encourage participation in programs for underserved children in Utah including but not limited to the Give Kids a Smile program operated by the UDA and partners. The SDD will also continue to encourage dentists to see children with Utah Medicaid dental benefits. Efforts will also be continued to encourage first dental visits by age one as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry.

In February 2021, the SDD presented at a statewide UDA Leadership Conference to explain what is required for dentists to become providers to treat all of the patients in all of the various Utah Medicaid programs or arrangements. There are actually five applications for providers. First is the application as a Utah Medicaid provider, which is also required for the other four. Then there are two applications for the each of the two managed care plans and one application for CHIP dental. Finally, there is an application to be a University of Utah School of Dentistry Network Provider to treat some of the patient types that must get treatment through them.

The OHP Oral Health Educator (OHE) with OHP interns will continue to provide oral health education and dental referrals to middle and high school students in select schools within Canyons, Granite, Weber, and Tooele School Districts and at the Utah School for the Deaf and the Blind.  The OHE and future interns will also be available for virtual presentations in other districts. This program was run completely virtually in the 2020 - 2021 school year due to the pandemic. The OHE will continue to collaborate with local dental hygiene programs to provide education resource booths at back to school nights in middle schools. The Oral Health Specialist (OHS), OHE, and SDD will continue to work with and promote teledentistry to increase access to care for school-based programs.

The OHP will continue inter-professional collaborations and outreach to vulnerable populations with the University of Utah’s PA Program. The OHS and OHE will provide training to PA students on the AAP’s Oral Health Risk Assessment and applying fluoride varnish. The OHP and PA program will screen migrant farm children through the migrant HeadStart programs and parents through the migrant farm workers screening days.
 

Proposed Activities:
 

• The OHS, OHE and SDD will continue to work with and promote teledentistry to increase access to care for school based programs.
   
• The OHP will continue to provide oral health articles bi-annually for the American Academy of Pediatrics Utah Chapter newsletter as well as bi-annual newsletters for the WIC “Wire and Flash”.
   
• The OHP will continue to use the “12 Oral Health Messages” modules and magnets to share with WIC’s, Head Start, Fostering Healthy Children, Home Visiting etc.  Maternal & Infant oral health messages are included in this.
   
• The State Dental Director will continue to work with the Utah Dental Association to encourage participation in programs for underserved children in Utah.
   
• The OHE in collaboration with OHP Interns will continue to provide middle school students with the adolescent oral health campaign educational intervention and local dental resources. This will be available in person and virtually.
   
• The OHP will continue inter-professional collaborations and outreach to vulnerable populations with the University of Utah’s PA Program.
   
• The OHE will work with the State Nurse Collaborator to create an oral health toolkit for all school RN’s in Utah. Including information on (AAP) Oral Health Risk Assessment, trauma, nutrition and educational posters.

Priority Need: Family Connectedness

SPM-2: Percent of family members who live in the household that ate a meal together 4 or more days per week.
 

Annual Plan FY22:

Family meals has been a priority for the EPICC program since 2014, when the current governor was asked to sign a declaration creating Healthy Family Meals Month in Utah in September.  In the declaration it states "we encourage families to make time to eat and socialize together around the dinner table at least once a week, enjoying one another's company, strengthening relationships, and eating nutritious foods.  EPICC develops messaging each September to promote on various social media platforms to encourage families to engage in this health promoting behavior.  Children who are engaged with their parents through supportive activities such as frequent family meals, are more likely to limit the use of harmful or illegal substances; achieve greater success in school; develop a high self-esteem, experience fewer mental and behavioral issues, including fewer serious thoughts of suicide; have lower obesity rates; cultivate improved communication skills; build stronger ties with their families and develop healthier eating and lifestyle habits.

The Family and Youth Outreach Program is implementing a curriculum called Teen Speak with Utah parents of youth with IEP’s through funding from Utah State University’s Center for Persons with Disabilities. The goal of the program is to foster positive adult-youth communication and strengthen relationships, ultimately empowering young people to make healthy decisions. This program supports the family meal time objective by promoting time spent together and improving communication between parents and their children.

Family Youth and Outreach Program:
 

From July 1, 2021 - June 30, 2022, implement Teen Speak with at least 240 parents/guardians of students with disabilities, referred by organizations that reach parents/guardians through in-person and/or web-based platforms.

Activities include:
 

• Contact and promote the Teen Speak program to at least three new parent-serving organizations (other than UT Foster Care)
   
• Implement at least 24 Teen Speak workshops (either virtual, in-person, or hybrid) to parents throughout Utah (averaging two workshops per month) with up to 10 people per session
   
• Provide access to online Teen Speak modules for participants to complete before live training. Online modules will be made available by the developer in Fall 2021
   
• Maintain partnership with UT Foster Care and recruit for Teen Speak participants by publishing one article per quarter in the Foster Roster newsletter and  advertising monthly on social media
   
• Hold at least one training-of-facilitators (TOF) with up to 10 participants in the Teen Speak curriculum
   
• Distribute incentives to program participants (communication cards & $25 gift cards for parents, $50 gift cards for TOF participants)
   
• Facilitators will ensure Teen Speak evaluation tool from the developer is completed by participants. Data will be compiled and processed into reportable information.

EPICC:

During the school year 2021-2022 the EPICC program will work with the State Board of Education, local health departments and local education agencies to promote and offer summer meal programs. Each organization will work with school sites that offer summer meals programs and promote the importance of healthy family meals. Family meals provide an opportunity for family members to come together, strengthen ties and build better relationships. Additional activities include:
 

• Ask Governor Cox to proclaim September 2021 as Healthy Family Meals Month. (Proclamation attached below)
   
• Create and publish podcasts regarding Healthy Family Meals Month, and how to cook healthy family meals.
   
• Create and post family meals Facebook posts during Family meals month in 2021 and throughout the year.

Governor’s Proclamation

“Whereas, family meals have long constituted a substantial pillar of family life in America;
 

Whereas, interaction between family members during meals has many positive effects on the social, emotional, and physical well-being of families and individuals, particularly youth;

Whereas, children who are engaged with their parents through supportive activities, such as frequent family meals, are more likely to limit the use of harmful or illegal substances; achieve greater success in school; develop a high self-esteem; experience fewer mental and behavioral issues, including fewer serious thoughts of suicide; have lower obesity rates; cultivate improved communication skills; build stronger ties with their families; and develop healthier eating and lifestyle habits; and

Whereas, we encourage families to make time to eat and socialize together around the dinner table at least once a week, enjoying one another’s company, strengthening relationships, and eating nutritious foods;
 

Now, therefore, I, Spencer J. Cox, Governor of the State of Utah, do hereby declare September 2021 as Healthy Family Meals Month in Utah”

Priority Need: Economic Stability

SPM-3: Percent of students enrolled in the free or reduced price lunch program.
 

Annual Plan FY22:
 

Local health departments (LHDs) will provide support and technical support to Local Education Agencies (LEAs) to strengthen local wellness policies in conjunction with the Child Nutrition Program (CNP) administrative reviews.

The Healthy Living through Environment, Policy and Improved Clinical Care (EPICC) will continue to foster and build strong relationships between the Utah Department of Health and the State Board of Education (USBE), Child Nutrition Program (CNP). S. Roundy will develop a plan with the CNP to identify ways to increase meal participation.

EPICC has plans to work with WIC, DWS and other state agencies to streamline and identify processes for families who qualify for free and reduced lunch easier.

EPICC will work with Action for Healthy Kids to create messaging strategies to educate families about school meals.

EPICC will work with LEAs to determine success and barriers around school meal participation.

Proposed Activities:
 

• Continue to support LEA to strengthen local wellness policies during their tri-annual administrative review. LHDs will provide an assessment tool, participate on wellness committees, and provide guidance to ensure that all components of the wellness policy are included.
   
• Partner with the State Board of Education to ensure that schools who participate in the National School Lunch Program also participate in the National School Breakfast Program. LHDs will work with LEAs and schools to implement innovative service models to increase participation.
   
• Promote farm to school initiatives such as harvest of the season with food service directors. Provide support and connections to local growers to meal services staff. Work with food service directors to increase participation in school meals with marketing tools.