The Center of Excellence for Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation proudly releases new national educational offerings for Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health Consultants

The Center of Excellence for Infant & Early Childhood Mental Consultation (CoE for IECMHC) has released a collection of foundational educational materials to support the professional development of current and aspiring Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health consultants.

The series of professional development resources, entitled IECMHC Foundations, will roll out throughout October. The resources include:

• The Consultant Assessment. A free self-assessment developed by the Center of Excellence based on the National Competencies designed to support Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Consultants in their professional development. The Consultant Assessment will be released mid-October.

• The Foundational Modules of IECMHC. A free e-learning program developed by the Center of Excellence to help IECMH Consultants build knowledge and skills. The Foundational Modules consist of eight learning modules representing the eight core competencies of IECMHC. Each module consists of an introductory video from an IECMHC subject matter expert and key learning concepts. The foundational modules will be released throughout October and November.

• The Revised IECMHC Competencies. Originally published in 2015, the IECMHC competencies were finalized by the CoE and colleagues and are a critical step towards building a national consensus on the array of foundational skills, knowledge, and abilities needed to be a competent IECMH consultant. This year, the CoE and partners at Tulane University and the Children’s Equity Project further revised the core competencies with attention to equity.

“The IECMHC Foundations represent our efforts to support the professionalization of the field of mental health consultation.  By providing competencies, a means of assessing professional development and introductory modules, we hope to grow and advance the field of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation,” said Dr. Neal M. Horen, Director of the Center of Excellence. “These educational materials are designed to “provide not only the core basic educational materials to support consultants, but also our efforts to expand the capacity of mental health consultation programs across the country to provide high quality, evidence-driven supports and services.”

To learn more about these critical educational resources, the Center of Excellence is hosting free webinars in October and November with IECMH consultants and programs across the country:

• Tuesday, October 20 from 3-4:30 p.m. ET. Register here.
• Tuesday, November 10 from 1:30-3:00 p.m. ET. Register here.

And coming soon: Foundational IECMHC Evaluation Resources

Stay tuned for the November release of a new suite of resources for evaluating IECMHC programs, including a guide to measurement tools and a summary of the evidence base, including published and state-level evaluations.

Funded through a grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the Center and its newest educational materials are an evolution of the work of many individuals and groups throughout the country who shared their expertise and their programs’ training materials to ensure these emerging national competencies align with exemplar programs with a history of providing effective IECMHC.

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The Center of Excellence for Infant & Early Childhood Mental Consultation (CoE for IECMHC), housed at Georgetown University’s Center for Child and Human Development (GUCCHD), is a national center that provides technical assistance to programs, communities, states, territories, and tribal communities, and professional development to individual mental health consultants to increase access to high quality mental health consultation throughout the country. The Center aims to impact the field of IECMHC by supporting the growth and advancement of the profession. The CoE for IECMHC is funded by the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and led in partnership with Tulane University, the RAINE group and the Children’s Equity Project housed at Arizona State University.

Contact: iecmhc@georgetown.edu