AUTHOR=Liu Meisui , Neri Mini Fernanda , Torres Carlos , Kwete Gracia M. , Boudreau Alexy Arauz , Hunter Mary Lyons , Parra Maria Yolanda , Lopez William , Izen Amy , Price Sarah N. , Perkins Meghan E. , Taveras Elsie M. TITLE=Fostering Resilience in Pregnancy and Early Childhood During the COVID-19 Pandemic: The HUGS/Abrazos Program Design and Implementation JOURNAL=Frontiers in Public Health VOLUME=9 YEAR=2021 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2021.633285 DOI=10.3389/fpubh.2021.633285 ISSN=2296-2565 ABSTRACT=

Pregnancy and early childhood pose unique sensitivity to stressors such as economic instability, poor mental health, and social inequities all of which have been magnified by the COVID-19 pandemic. In absence of protective buffers, prolonged exposure to excessive, early adversity can lead to poor health outcomes with significant impact lasting beyond the childhood years. Helping Us Grow Stronger (HUGS/Abrazos) is a community-based program, designed and launched at the time of the COVID-19 surge in the Spring of 2020, that combines emergency relief, patient navigation, and direct behavioral health support to foster family resilience and mitigate the negative impacts of COVID-related toxic stress on pregnant women and families with children under age 6. Through a targeted referral process, community health workers provide resource navigation for social needs, and a social worker provides behavioral health support. The use of innovative tools such as a centralized resource repository, community health workers with specialized knowledge in this age range, and a direct referral system seeks to assist in streamlining communication and ensuring delivery of quality care. We aim to serve over 300 families within the 1st year. The HUGS/Abrazos program aims to fill an important void by providing the necessary tools and interventions to support pregnant women and young families impacted by adversity exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.