Healthier Together 0-19 Middlesbrough

0-5 Healthier Together Service

The role of the 0-5 Health Visiting Service in Middlesbrough is to protect and promote the health and wellbeing of children under five and their families. All families with a child under five in Middlesbrough have access to the Health Visiting 0-5 Team, consisting of Health Visitors, Healthy Child Nurses, Family Practitioners, Early Years Practitioners and Infant Feeding Specialists. They provide expert health assessments, advice, support and interventions for babies, children and families.

The Team encourages and supports parents and carers to develop life-long skills to enable them to make informed choices that affect their family’s future health and wellbeing.

The Team works in community settings to deliver universal and targeted interventions designed to meet public health outcomes. We ensure the emotional and physical health and wellbeing of families, children and young people across Middlesbrough.

The service works in partnership with other agencies to ensure all families receive support.

Locations

The team is community-based and is accessible at a range of different venues including the family home, Family Hubs, schools and other community venues.

Antenatal courses, introducing solids sessions, Healthy Child clinics and Breastfeeding Support Groups are held in Family Hubs and other community venues.

Healthier Together Team

Health Visitors are registered nurses or midwives who have an additional qualification in specialist community public health nursing. They are highly skilled in the assessment and co-ordination of support tailored to individual and family needs.

We aim to help build parents’ confidence in their ability to give their child the best start in life and listen carefully when parents have concerns. We identify and build on what is going well and provide information to help parents find their own solutions to problems where possible.

The 0-5 Team comprises Specialist Community Public Health Nurses (Health Visitors), Healthy Child Nurses (Registered Nurses), Family Practitioners, Early Years Practitioners and Administrators.

We have a Health Visitor linked to each GP practice.

We work closely with Midwives and School Nurses so that children and families with complex health and social care needs are identified early. We then put in place a health management plan to support the child’s health and development, when ready to transfer to school for their education.

When children and families require targeted interventions, these may be provided solely by the Healthier Together Team or delivered in partnership with other services who can help. Common partners for such interventions are Midwives, Family Hub Team, education, Children’s Services, or Voluntary Sector partners. We liaise with the relevant agencies to provide a ‘one team’ approach.

Healthy Child Programme (HCP)

The Healthy Child Programme is a public health programme for children, young people and families which focus on early intervention and prevention.

The HCP offers a programme of

screening tests
Immunisations
developmental reviews

Information and guidance to support parenting and healthy lifestyle choices.

Antenatal contact– usually after 28weeks in pregnancy, this visit provides an opportunity for building a relationship with you and your family before the baby arrives. We will discuss health and wellbeing and preparation for parenthood.
New birth visit at 10-14 days – The aim is to support and develop skills and confidence in new parents by sharing information on family and child health issues. Discuss maternal and family health and wellbeing
Contact at 6-8 weeks– carried out by Health Visitors or Healthy Child Nurses, review baby’s development growth and feeding. Discuss maternal and family health and wellbeing.
In addition, we offer a 12 to 16 week contact – carried out by Health Visitors or Healthy Child Nurses, discuss preparation for introducing solids. Discuss maternal and family health and wellbeing.
A child health review/development assessment by one year of age
A child health review/development assessment by two and a half years of age

Additional support

For most of us, bringing up children is the most important job we will ever do. It is very rewarding and often challenging. The Health Visiting Team are here to help when families need additional support.

The Best Start Pathway is delivered with our Family Hub colleagues. It is an enhanced visiting pathway for families where additional support is required. Not all families will need additional support.

The Health Visiting (0-5) Team offer targeted support to children and families including those who are safeguarded. We accept referrals for a range of issues including advice around immunisations, safety, support around toileting, behaviour, sleep, fussy eating, parental emotional wellbeing support, targeted support around health and development needs for children with SEND needs with a graduated response regarding any required onward referrals. We provide health information to inform Education, Health Care Plans (EHCPs). We also carry out statutory child in care health assessments

We work individually with families, using a plan of care that we develop together to give all children the best possible start in life. As part of the plan, families and Health Visitors may work closely with other professionals, including midwives, GPs, hospital staff, Family Hub Team and Children’s Services.

Some common areas of information and support:

Pregnancy and transition into parenthood
Infant feeding/ specialist breast feeding support
Growth and nutrition
Healthy eating
Parenting
Dental health
Behaviour
Accident prevention
Safe sleeping
Toilet training
Speech and language development
Immunisations
Common childhood illness/infection
Safeguarding
Postnatal depression and emotional wellbeing
Health Exercise and Nutrition in the Really Young (HENRY) courses (targeted offer)
Tees Valley Sleep Service Tees Valley Sleep Service is delivered in partnership with Daisy Chain (targeted for children aged 2.5 years and above, where sleep is an issue and there is an additional health or development need).

Useful links

NHS Choices baby and children videos Child immunisation schedule Baby Friendly Initiative Mind’s information about and support for postnatal depression Transitions VLOG NCMP VLOG www.nenc-healthiertogether.nhs.uk

5-19 Healthier Together Service

All children and young people aged 5-19 and their families have access to the School Nursing Team consisting of Specialist Community Public Health Nurses (School Nurses), Healthy Child Nurses (Registered Nurses), Family Practitioners, Early Years Practitioners and School Screening Practitioners. They work in partnership with children, young people and families to empower and enable them to make informed decisions about health, and to support them in transitioning safely and happily into adult life.

The team works in community settings to deliver universal and targeted interventions designed to meet public health outcomes. We ensure the emotional and physical health and wellbeing of families, children and young people across Middlesbrough.

Referral to the 5-19 service

The service accepts referrals from:

Schools
GPs and other professionals
Self-referral from parents/carers or young people
Other statutory and voluntary agencies

We work with children, young people and families to empower and enable them to make informed decisions about health, and to support them in transitioning safely and happily into adult life. The 5-19 Healthier Together Service works in community settings to deliver universal and targeted interventions designed to meet public health outcomes. We ensure the emotional and physical health and wellbeing of families, children and young people across Middlesbrough.

School Nurses

School Nurses are Registered Nurses or Midwives who have an additional qualification in Specialist Community Public Health Nursing. They are highly skilled in the assessment and co-ordination of support tailored to individual and family needs

5-19 Team

The 5-19 Team comprises Specialist Community Public Health Nurses (School Nurses), Healthy Child Nurses (Registered Nurses), Early Years Practitioners, School Screening Practitioners and Administrators.

We work closely with Health Visitors so that children and families with complex health and social care needs are identified early. We then put in place a health management plan to support the child’s health, school attendance and education.

The School Nursing team provides a service to all children and young people of school age, and their families, whether or not they are attending school. The service is based on the Healthy Child Programme from 5-19 years old. We offer advice and information and work with children and families with health needs that we can affect. We are the first point of contact for schools when there are concerns about a child’s health and wellbeing.

Healthy Child Programme

The Healthy Child Programme is a public health programme for children, young people and families which focus on early intervention and prevention.

The HCP offers a programme of:

Screening and surveillance tests
Immunisations
developmental reviews
Information and guidance to support parenting and healthy lifestyle choices.

We also carry out:

Measuring and weighing children in reception and year 6 as part of the National Child Measurement Programme https://youtu.be/pA7l2SZhTx0
Universal screening for vision and audiology (hearing) screening for reception children

We can also support with:

There is a designated Immunisation Team who undertake immunisation and vaccinations (we promote uptake and can assist with booking appointments when children and young people need to get caught up with the immunisation programme)
Providing enuresis (involuntary urination) first line advice and support
Providing emotional health and wellbeing support
Supporting children and families with additional health needs or disability
Parenting and behavioural problems
Risk taking behaviour including drugs and alcohol
Stopping smoking brief interventions and referral to specialist services
Relationships, sexual health and pregnancy
Promoting healthy lifestyles in schools and communities through health education
Growing up with HENRY courses (targeted offer)
Tees Valley Sleep Service is delivered in partnership with Daisy Chain (targeted for children aged 2.5 years and above, where sleep is an issue and there is an additional health or development need.

Young person’s drop ins are available in community venues

Specialist advice and support will also be offered to:

Children in need of protection and their families; children and families in need; foster carers and children who are in care.

We support children with SEND with a health need that we can affect and provide information to inform Education and Health Care Plans. We ensure a graduated response to needs and onward referrals as required. We carry out statutory child in care assessments for children that we are actively working with.

When young people and families require targeted interventions, these may be provided solely by the Healthier Together Team or delivered in partnership. Common partners for such interventions are Stronger Families, Education, Leisure Services or Youth Services. We liaise with the relevant agencies to provide a ‘one team’ approach.