Early intervention team

EI is usually provided by the transdisciplinary, interdepartmental Early Intervention Team which consists of different professionals that make up a unique team that is gathered around the families. These professionals are usually derived from three systems: the healthcare system, the system of education, and the system of social protection. Each team has a primary care provider (PCP) who is in charge of a certain family and their needs. The primary aim of these EI teams is to provide better coordination and communication between the systems and professionals in different areas. In turn, this decreases the burden of caregivers who, in the past, had to coordinate all of the activities between the different systems and take care of their children and families. The EI teams base their work on upgrading the strengths of the families and helping the families to prioritize their needs.

Components of EI programs

All children deserve the best possible starting of life and their development throughout childhood and adolescence lay the foundation for their happy, healthy, and productive lives. The first component of the early intervention program is to identify the delay or disability that the child has. Then the intervention is directed at providing early support to children who are at risk of experiencing poor outcomes such as developmental delays, struggles at school, mental health problems, physical problems, sensory deficits, etc. This intervention aims to prevent any negative outcomes and to help the individual to reach their full potential through a series of interventions designed for each individual and their family. Apart from the prevention, the interventions also serve to tackle the problem head-on if the problem occurs before they get worse. The purpose of early interventions is to put in place small solutions early on, rather than having the need for a bigger solution later. The interventions can take place in different forms including home visits, support of the new or vulnerable caregivers or parents, school based programs, mentoring programs for young people, support groups, etc. All of these forms of support can be provided by the different services. They usually include the government, national charity organizations, local councils, NGOs, and small community organizations. Sometimes the EIs are provided by a stand-alone program, while sometimes it is just part of how public services work with children and families.