About
The Infant Mental Health Network Dublin 7 & 1 was established in June 2024 by One Family in partnership with ABC Grangegorman, to better support one-parent families with complex and intersectional needs.
Network membership includes front-line service providers, early years services, NGO’s and other professionals working to support or interacting with one-parent families.
Our Aim
To increase awareness and understanding of Infant Mental Health (see below) and its practical application. We will hopefully do this through the regular meetings of the network which will provide a forum for discussion, learning and reflection on our practice, as well as highlight for us the needs and gaps that may exist in our own knowledge, our community, and in turn, service provision.
We have been successful in 2024 in securing funding to establish the network, funded through The Wheel, which will allow us to respond to the training needs of front-line practitioners across the community (2024-2026).
What is Infant Mental Health?
Infant Mental Health (IMH) is an interdisciplinary field and embraces the importance of promoting positive mental health development within a relational framework with the child’s caregiver(s). IMH practice is best understood along a continuum which includes promotion, prevention, intervention and treatment integrated across services and disciplines.
IMH principles incorporate developmental, clinical and preventative perspectives that inform the practice of service providers of different disciplines whose original training may have emphasised a different knowledge base and different skills. Some lack knowledge about infant development and behaviour in the early years but have a strong clinical understanding.
Others are well prepared to meet the developmental needs of very young children but may be new to infant mental health principles and practices. For most, working within a relational framework is new and requires specialised education and training relevant to each individual discipline but, more importantly, also on how best to integrate IMH principles across disciplines and services
Reference: Infant Mental Health Learning Networks, North Cork, Evaluation of an interdisciplinary model for integrating Infant Mental Health principles into everyday clinical practice and service in the community https://www.tusla.ie/uploads/content/Evaluation_of_an_interdisciplinary_model_for_integrating_Infant_Mental_Health_principles_into_everyday_clinical_practice_and_service_in_the_community.pdf
Who can join our IMH Network
Membership is open to front line practitioners working in the Dublin 7 or 1 area, whose work engages them with infants, young children and/or parents and who feel they would benefit from peer support and gaining a deeper understanding of how IMH theory could support practice and service provision.
How to Join
Contact Aisling Kelly, Parenting Service Manager, One Family
Email: akelly@onefamily.ie / Phone: 01 662 9212
Members are asked to complete a Master Class in Infant Mental Health. More information will be shared.
