| Fri, 11th March 2005
The Northern Rivers Family Care Centre is a day stay unit for parents with children from newborn to around one year of age who are having difficulties, or require further support with:
- feeding (breast, weaning, bottle, solids);
- unsettled behaviour and related sleeping patterns;
- adjustment to parenthood issues for the family;
- postnatal distress; or
- parentcraft issues.
Located in the grounds of St Vincent’s Hospital in Lismore, the Family Care Centre aims to promote healthy functioning families and encourage adequate parenting skills through education, demonstration, reassurance and support. It is staffed by specialist nurses and social workers. Regular outreach clinics are held in Iluka and Ballina, and as required in Evans Head and Casino.
For a referral to the clinic please see your GP or child and family health nurse.
The Northern Rivers Family Care Centre is a project of the Northern Rivers Division of General Practice and is supported by St Vincent’s Hospital and the North Coast Area Health Service.
Parenting Support ProjectIn April 2004 The Northern Rivers Division of General Practice was awarded $100,000 from the Commonwealth Government, under the Stronger Families and Communities Strategy 2004-2008, to expand parenting support services at the Northern Rivers Family Care Centre.
New parenting groups
The funding is being used to expand parenting support services through community-based parenting groups for families with children at specific stages during the 0-5 year age group. The GP and early childhood nurse led groups are being piloted in Lismore and Alstonville initially for parents of children up to 12 months. Please see the Parenting Groups Calendar for dates.
The project aims to normalise the parenting process for new families. Topics such as expectations for specific ages, challenges that may be expected and simple behaviour management techniques will be addressed with parents. The aim is to make parenting support in the early years as routine and well accepted as antenatal care, not something that is needed only when problems develop.
The parenting groups will be complemented by a series of age-specific newsletters addressing key development issues to be sent to parents from their family GP.
The funding is also being used to develop the skills of local GPs in providing brief interventions during routine consultations to assist parents in family issues and child development. GPs will encourage parents to attend the parenting groups as a matter of course.
Dr Paul Earner is managing the parent support project and Lee McDonald is the project officer. Lee, a registered nurse, midwife and early childhood nurse, previously worked at the division as project officer with the postnatal project, which culminated in the opening of the Northern Rivers Family Care Centre in 2002.
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