Indiana has an outstanding history of implementing a comprehensive, high-quality early childhood system characterized by multiple collaborative efforts and leaders committed to the health and well-being of mothers and children. Both MIECHV co-lead partnering agencies, the Indiana Department of Health (IDOH) and Department of Child Services (DCS) have long-standing histories of addressing needs of women and children through home visiting, as well as other programs and initiatives that contribute to a comprehensive, high quality early childhood system throughout the state.

The vision of Indiana MIECHV is to improve health and development outcomes for children and families who are at risk through achievement of the following goals:

• Provide home visiting services to expectant families with young children residing in Indiana who have lower incomes and are at higher risk of adverse health and developmental outcomes to improve their health and well-being.
• Develop a system of coordinated services statewide of existing and newly developed home visiting programs in order to provide need-based, targeted, and unduplicated services and locally coordinated referrals to all eligible children, mothers, and families
• Coordinate necessary services outside of home visiting programs to address needs of participants, which may include: mental health, primary care, dental health, children with special needs, substance use, childhood injury prevention, child abuse/neglect/maltreatment, school readiness, housing, employment training, and adult education programs.

These goals are measured in six statutorily mandated benchmark areas:

1. Improved maternal and newborn health;
2. Reduction in child injuries, abuse, neglect, or maltreatment and reduction of emergency department visits;
3. Improvements in school readiness and achievement;
4. Crime or domestic violence;
5. Family economic self-sufficiency;
6. Coordination and referrals for other community resources.

In addition to direct home visiting services, Indiana supports the following activities through MIECHV:

• Indiana Early Childhood Collaborative (INECC)
• Institute for Strengthening Families
• Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI)
  • HV CoIIN – Workforce and Retention
  • Collaborative quality improvement efforts with My Healthy Baby
  • Local Implementing Agency (LIA) efforts
  • Training and Coaching for LIA teams
• Infrastructure support and technical assistance of HFI mental health consultation enhancement
• Association of State and Tribal Home Visiting Initiatives (ASTHVI)

MIECHV-funded families in Indiana receive home visiting services from either Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) or Healthy Families Indiana.

• Nurse-Family Partnership

NFP is an evidence-based, community health program with over 40 years of evidence showing significant improvements in the health and lives of first-time moms and their children living in poverty. NFP pairs a first-time mom with a specially trained nurse who regularly conducts home visits starting early in pregnancy, continuing through the child’s second birthday. To qualify for the program, a woman must be fewer than 28 weeks pregnant with her first child, be Medicaid eligible, and live in a county where services are currently offered.

• Healthy Families Indiana

Healthy Families Indiana is a voluntary evidence-based home visitation program that is designed to promote healthy families and healthy children through a variety of services including child development, access to health care, and parent education. Healthy Families Indiana has been in partnership with Healthy Families America (HFA), the national home visitation model, since 1994. To qualify for services, families must be assessed and enrolled during pregnancy or up to child age of 3 months.