The Intersection of Early Relational Health and Early Intervention

Over four hundred thousand children receive Part C early intervention services and over 750,000 children receive Part B, preschool services. The most prevalent disability categories are developmental delay (45.1%), speech or language impairment (35.8%), and autism (12.2%). Approximately 10% of children ages 0–5 in the US experience social, emotional, and/or behavioral problems that hamper their functioning and development and often occur with a developmental disability or delay. Social emotional and behavioral difficulties seen at early ages often predict social and academic challenges later in life. Pediatric physical therapists are often the first to provide services to infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with developmental delays or disabilities. The tenants of Early Intervention require us to collaborate and partner with families, helping them to support the development of their child using community-based, naturally occurring learning opportunities. Similarly, Early Relational Health promotes building the capacity of families, caregivers, and communities to support young children’s growth and development as the essential foundation for physical, behavioral, and mental health, resilience, and well-being. Infant Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation, a nationally recognized best practice is a prevention-based approach that operationalizes Early Relational Health equipping caregivers to facilitate children’s healthy social and emotional development. This plenary session will discuss the similarities and differences between Early Intervention and Early Relational Health, discuss how physical therapists can use the principles of early relational health to enhance their family partnerships, and introduce Infant Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation (IECMHC) as a strategy for physical therapists to incorporate into their intervention plans.