pregnant
WECHU: Building Blocks for Better Babies
Building Blocks for Better Babies (BBBB) is the local Canada Prenatal Nutrition Program funded by the Public Health Agency of Canada. BBBB is a FREE weekly prenatal program taught by Registered Dietitians and Public Health Nurses.
BBBB offers:
- Answers to pregnancy questions;
- Breastfeeding support;
- Healthy eating;
- Care of mom and newborn; and,
- FREE vitamins & food vouchers for families who need them.
BBBB’s goal is to help moms who can relate to any of the following challenges which may affect their health or the health of their baby:
- Worry about having enough food;
- New to Canada in past 10 years;
- Struggle with anxiety/depression;
- Have not finished high school;
- Are a single parent; and/or,
- Are under 20 years of age.
Participants are welcome to join BBBB any time during their pregnancy and continue in the program until their baby is 5 months old.
BBBB can provide free prenatal vitamins throughout pregnancy and during breastfeeding. As well, for those families who need it, BBBB provides $10 weekly food vouchers to help make sure they have enough food to have a healthy pregnancy.
BBBB offers both in-person and virtual classes:
- Tuesday (Windsor In-person) 12:30-2:30pm @ Peace Lutheran Church
- Wednesdays (Leamington In-person) 10:00am-noon @ LakePoint Family Church
- Thursdays noon-1:00pm (followed by prenatal exercise) via Zoom
Call or text to register: 519-977-6862
WECHU’s Healthy Families: Breastfeeding Support
WECHU’s Healthy Families: Breastfeeding Support
The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit’s Healthy Families Department provides a multifaceted program to our community. Breastfeeding support, provided throughout the prenatal and postpartum periods, is part of this department. Our International Board Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLCs) and Public Health Nurses (PHNs) provide group and one-on-one support to women and their families. Breastfeeding concerns that are often addressed include:
- Latching & positioning
- Sore, cracked nipples
- Engorgement
- Mastitis
- Thrush
- Oversupply
- Low milk supply.
Breastfeeding support is provided through different avenues including: online breastfeeding classes, our Healthy Families hotline, and one-on-one.
Online Breastfeeding Classes:
- Taught by an IBCLC.
- Offered to prenatal & postpartum individuals & families.
- Provided on a virtual platform twice a month.
- Topics include: importance of breastfeeding, breastfeeding basics, latching & positioning, common concerns, and community breastfeeding supports.
“Ask A Nurse” Healthy Families Hotline:
- Phone support available Monday-Friday from 8:30am until 4pm.
- PHNs answer questions and provides resources or connects callers with appropriate community resources.
One-On-One Breastfeeding Support:
- Provided by a Public Health Nurse (PHN) or an IBCLC. Support is available:
- Online
- Over the phone
The research is very clear – if women and their families are provided with breastfeeding information in the prenatal period; breastfeeding is more likely to be successful. Please refer prenatal women who are interested in breastfeeding to our breastfeeding class. Furthermore, if you encounter any postpartum women who would benefit from our breastfeeding services, please contact us. You can call 519-258-2146, ext 1350 or complete an online referral form: https://www.wechu.org/parents. We are here to help and look forward to collaborating with you!
WECHU: Healthy Babies Healthy Children (HBHC) program
Pregnant? Parent with Young Children?
Windsor-Essex County Health Unit’s (WECHU) Healthy Babies Healthy Children program is here to help!
What is the Healthy Babies Healthy Children (HBHC) program?
The goal of HBHC is to promote optimal physical, cognitive, and psychosocial growth and development in children at risk while increasing parental capacity. HBHC is designed to support pregnant women and families with young children from birth to school entry. The HBHC team[AR1] provides customized, in-home support to parents to help their children have a healthy start in life.
HBHC is a FREE and voluntary provincial program that is designed to help families learn how to:
- support a healthy pregnancy and birth
- form a healthy attachment with their baby or child
- breastfeed, formula feed, introduce solid foods, and provide nutritious meals
- support physical growth as well as mental and emotional development
- support their own mental health
- connect with relevant community services.
The HBHC is a multidisciplinary team made up of Public Health Nurses, Social Workers (MSW), and Family Home Visitors. The HBHC nurses use a Universal Screening tool and targeted assessments to help create family centered goals and interventions that are unique to the needs of the families they are working with. Interpretation services are available for families. Additionally, the HBHC program has access to many translated resources for their families.
Our two MSWs support families through advocacy and education. They assist clients with immigration and settlement, housing security, financial resources, OW/ODSP, educational attainment, and employment. They also assist with cultural adaptation.
Both MSW supports families with mental health and substance use issues through a client-centered and trauma-informed lens. The MSW supports clients by assessing and stabilizing mental health and substance use issues and referring to appropriate community resources. [AR1] In addition, the MSW can support clients who are on a wait list for community mental health services and/ or substance use services in the interim through individual supportive counselling.
Clients experiencing domestic abuse and/or sexual exploitation are also supported by the HBHC nurses including the MSW’s through brief intervention, psycho-social support, and coordination with community partner agencies.
Who is HBHC for?
HBHC is for families who have been identified with risk by the HBHC universal screening tool that is used provincial wide by Public Health Units.
How can a Health Care Provider refer to HBHC?
Providers or clients can complete our new online referral form, which is available at https://www.wechu.org/parents or call the Healthy Families department at 519-258-2146 ext. 1350.
