What is the Essex Pregnancy & Parenting Connection?
The Essex Pregnancy & Parenting Connection (EPPC) is a service that links Essex County families who are expecting a baby with free and voluntary home visiting services when possible. The EPPC also provides links to other preventive health and support services to promote overall wellness during pregnancy and after the arrival of the baby. The goal is to provide successful connections between expectant or newly parenting families and the services they need to stay healthy and safe.
What are the goals of the EPPC?
The EPPC aims to:
Identify prenatal care risk factors and needs among expectant and parenting families who have a child under 3 months old
Guide women and families to an appropriate intensity of service among a continuum of evidence-based home visiting home visiting programs, connect women to preventive health and support services that promote overall wellness, while preventing child maltreatment and poor health outcomes.
How does the EPPC work?
The EPPC has relationships with prenatal care providers throughout Essex County. With the client's permission, a provider completes and returns the EPPC referral form for a pregnant woman who is already receiving prenatal care so that she can be offered home visiting or other services.
We also have relationships with a wide variety of community based agencies who serve pregnant women and new parents, or who may have contact with them. Staff from these agencies may also complete and return the EPPC referral form to connect pregnant women with home visiting or other services.
With a single referral to the EPPC from any source, a client can be considered for the following free and voluntary home visiting programs:
While each of these programs has its own specific eligibility criteria, referring agencies can make one referral to EPPC knowing that it will connect the client with the services best meeting her needs. Referring agencies who have formal agreements to work with the EPPC will be given feedback about the referrals they make. The EPPC can also accept self-referrals.
If you live in Essex County, are expecting a baby, and are in need of home visiting or other services, please contact us to speak to an EPPC representative who will ask you about the specific needs you have to properly link you with the services you are seeking.
I'm a professional working with pregnant women and families. How can I participate?
If you work for an agency that serves pregnant women or families who have just recently had a baby, and you would like to refer clients to the EPPC, please contact us. We can discuss the process in more detail, answer any questions you may have, and formalize an agreement to work together. The EPPC is always interested in expanding our reach within Essex County!
Resources
Neighborhood Connections helps residents of Northern New Jersey and those looking for employment find appropriate assistance that will give them hope and help them to move towards employment and self-sufficiency: www.thewaytohelp.com
Baby And Me
Thinking about getting pregnant? Already pregnant? Have you just had a baby? We can help. We can answer your questions and connect you to important resources. We can even help you make an appointment with a doctor. Our services are free. Contact us on the web (www.babyandme.org) or by phone at 855-5-BabyAndMe (855-522-2926).
June 10th EPPC community baby shower in Newark
Thank you to all who contributed to making EPPC’s first community baby shower a success, and to all the moms-to-be who attended! Special thanks to the following for their support: The YE2S Center, Saplings, Turtle Back Zoo, Newark Emergency Services for Families, Gateway Northwest Maternal and Child Health Network, Healthy Families Essex, Healthy Families Newark, Nurse-Family Partnership, Prevent Child Abuse – New Jersey, Monica Townsend, and Tamara Horn.
The NJ Department of Children and Families Division of Prevention and Community Partnerships (www.state.nj.us/dcf/)
About Prevent Child Abuse-New Jersey:
Prevent Child Abuse-New Jersey is committed to ensuring that babies get off to a healthy start and that their parents and caregivers have the education and skills to nurture safe, healthy development. We are a statewide organization born in Essex County, and as such we are proud to serve as a lead in the EPPC partnership. For more than 15 years, Prevent Child Abuse-New Jersey has been effectively building programs that offer home visitation and early parent education as a means to strengthen families and improve childhood outcomes. Our EPPC role includes bringing together the providers and organizations serving Essex families to integrate evidence-based practice and offer training and quality assurance to this unique system of coordinated care. For more information about Prevent Child Abuse-New Jersey and its programs, visit our website or contact us at 1-800-CHILDREN.
