An early intervention program for high-risk children in a health care setting

Early intervention programs are designed to provide detection, treatment, and prevention of handicaps, developmental delays, and environmental deprivation as early in a child's life as possible. Health care facilities, especially community health centers, are in a unique position to provide intervention services. The social work and nursing staffs of the Dimock Community Health Center in Roxbury, Massachusetts designed an early intervention program (P.E.C.S.--Parent Education and Child Stimulation) for high-risk families. The program addresses the effects of developmental delays and environmental deprivation prevalent in the birth to three-year-old population of the Center. This paper describes the organization and methodology of the program and indicates ways in which the program can be replicated.