Aboriginal Healthy Babies & Healthy Children Program (AHBHC)

Aboriginal Healthy Babies & Healthy Children Program is providing culturally appropriate support, education and assistance...

... to aboriginal families in their own environment as a means of empowering Aboriginal parents to meet the needs of their families.

• The AHBHC Program is a prevention/intervention plan for aboriginal families with children 0-6 years.
• The AHBHC Program is voluntary, and open to any aboriginal family that requires the service.
• The goal is to assist all aboriginal families to provide the best opportunities for healthy child development until the age of six, through home visits, service coordination and referrals.
• An equally important goal is to ensure the program addresses the children at risk, to ensure that they have access to services and support that will address their needs.
• The heart of the AHBHC program is getting ready to become parents, getting ready for birth and taking care of a baby (pre-natal and post-natal)
  

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The AHBHC Program delivers three components:

1. Client based services: home visits, family support plans, service coordination, and referrals
2. Participant based services: involves group and community activities
3. Networking: involves meeting with service/program agencies

The AHBHC Program grew out of the provincial HBHC program: a legislated program introduced by the Government of Ontario in 1997 Aboriginal Healthy Babies/ Healthy Children Program is a part of a province wide network of prevention and early intervention services for families. The Joint Management Committee of the Aboriginal Healing and Wellness Strategy agreed to deliver the Aboriginal component of the HBHC Program in 2000, and renewed its decision in 2003, for the duration of Phase 3 (to 2009). The AHBHC working groups acts on behalf of the Joint Management Committee in providing program direction.