Policy and Practice | August 2022

partnering for impact By Gary Pettengell

Early Intervention Is Key to Supporting Families: How Health and Human Services Agencies Can Make the Connection

O n May 17, 2022, the United States reached a grim milestone as the country surpassed one million lives lost to COVID-19, making the ongoing pandemic more deadly than the AIDS epidemic or the 1918 flu pandemic. As NPR concludes, it is the equiva lent of losing the entire population of San Jose, CA, the 10th largest city in the United States. 1 The devastation of the past two pandemic years cannot be over-empha sized, reaching deep into communities and exacerbating other challenges already lurking below the surface. For instance, it is estimated that 214,000 U.S. children have lost parents to the pandemic, bringing grief and uncer tainty alongside their loss. 2 At the same time, a confluence of other challenges are impacting com munities and families: drug and opioid overdose deaths reached record highs, 3 mental health challenges, especially among adolescents and teenagers, 4 have become more prevalent, and housing insecurity is more widespread as the end of the national eviction mor atorium exposes 5 millions of people to potential homelessness. Of course, every community has its own set of difficulties. Some align with national trends while others are unique unto themselves. Taken together, it is not surprising that demand for nonprofit and social support services is soaring. As these agencies and organizations help families and communities achieve holistic wellness, early intervention

Programs are utlizing QR codes to expedite services.

is key to their success, allowing health and human services agencies to do more with less as they improve outcomes while stewarding their personnel and financial resources to expand their reach and maximize their impact. To help meet this moment, here are three ways to make early inter vention possible across a connected network of health and human services agencies, nonprofits, and other support opportunities. 1. Make Support Services More Accessible Many people are reluctant to ask for help, even when they really need it. One survey 6 found that 73 percent of

Americans will not ask for help until “they absolutely need it.” Garret Keizer, author of Help: The Original Human Dilemma, explains this dynamic, writing, “There is a tendency to act as if it’s a deficiency. There is an under standable fear that if you let your guard down, you’ll get hurt, or that this information you don’t know will be used against you.” This dynamic is a significant hin drance to early intervention. If people do not ask for help until they are des perate, support agencies are forced to be responsive, not proactive, which diminishes their overall impact.

See Early Intervention on page 33

Photo via Shutterstock

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