Special X, Inc — Department of Health and Human Services STTR Phase I: NICHD

Description

Project Abstract Over 7 million children in the U.S. receive support for a developmental delay or disability (DD). For caregivers of these children, behavior issues that often accompany their childandapos;s condition create high levels of stress leading to increased mental and physical health issues and impacts on caregiver-child interactions and family functioning. Although evidence-based practices exist to help caregivers with their childandapos;s behavioral development, access to these services is often limited by rigid delivery models requiring in-person visits that can delay support and further increase the burden on families. These barriers are disproportionately higher for families of color and for those in low resource situations: an effect that has been exacerbated by reductions in services due to COVID-19. The overall objective of this project is to develop and implement a telehealth delivery model of rapid-response, evidence-based behavioral support to be provided in conjunction with an existing family navigation program (Undivided) serving parents of children with DD to create a commercially marketable product that will reduce barriers to services in local communities across the country. Building on Undividedandapos;s established systems and trusted relationships with a large community of families of children with DD, this project will extend that support by partnering with a text and telephone support service for caregivers of young children (FASTT). This Phase 1 application will enable a collaborative process to adapt evidence- based behavioral support to the specific needs of families of children ages birth to 12 with DD and integrate that support within the existing family navigation service. The rationale for the work is that providing effective, personalized support through the widely accessible mediums of text and telephone will get caregivers the help they need when and where they have time to access it and close in time to the behavioral issues they need help with, thus reducing caregiver stress and increasing their sense of competence and positive interactions with their child. Aim 1 determines the feasibility of delivering evidence-based behavioral support to caregivers of children with disabilities using on-demand text messaging. Aim 2 gauges the acceptability of the text-based support service to caregivers. Aim 3 assesses the extent to which text-based support reduces caregiver stress, improves caregiver sense of competence, and builds more positive perceptions of their childandapos;s behavior and their relationship with their child. The positive impacts of the project are twofold. First, the integration of the Undivided support platform with FASTT behavioral support represents an innovative approach to addressing the critical gap in early intervention services for caregivers of children with DD with significant immediate and long-term benefits for those families. Second, creating a delivery model that enables family navigation services to provide evidence-based telehealth behavioral support as part of their service portfolio will create marketable value by increasing engagement with families and subsequently increasing potential subscription revenue.Project Narrative For caregivers of children with developmental delay or disability, behavior issues and lack of access to evidence-based behavioral support can create high levels of stress with impacts on mental and physical health, caregiver-child interactions, and family functioning. The proposed project addresses that lack of access by developing and implementing a telehealth delivery model of rapid-response, evidence-based behavioral support through a collaboration between an established family navigation service and an innovative telehealth support program. This work is the initial step that will enable the Undivided support platform to integrate accessible, effective behavioral support into its service portfolio, increasing access for families of children with DD and promoting sustainability and engagement while providing critical immediate and long term benefits for families.