Workforce Awareness and Development are Necessary First Steps Toward Growing Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Services
This policy vignette shines a light on South Carolina’s early efforts to increase workforce awareness and capacity for addressing the mental health needs of children birth to 3. With the newly formed South Carolina Infant Mental Health Association (SCIMHA) and a multiagency team that participated in the ZERO TO THREE Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Financing Policy Project (IECMH-FPP), state leaders are exploring opportunities to address workforce readiness across service sectors to support healthy social and emotional development of young children. The vignette also shares key lessons learned.