"When we strengthen families, we ultimately strengthen the community. Our goal is that parents everywhere work with supportive providers, feel confident in their parenting role, and form strong, resilient attachments with their children. To help achieve this, providers must be responsive to parents, knowledgeable about child development, and eager to see every parent succeed." - T. Berry Brazelton, MD

Following the April 2006 meeting between the Maine Children’s Cabinet, Dr. T. Berry Brazelton and his senior faculty from the Touchpoints Center in Boston, the Maine Families home visiting program incorporated the Touchpoints approach throughout the Maine home visitation network. We enhanced the existing home visiting infrastructure through training and mentoring in order to create sustainable and viable communities of practice for all child and family serving providers and agencies.

1. Touchpoints provides the framework for developing a seamless system of care by integrating the work of providers through a common language and approach to better meet the needs of children and families;
   
2. Touchpoints provides the strategies and skills for providers to truly join the family’s system and to support families by helping them to identify and use their strengths to address their challenges, and to identify and connect with their natural supports.

A partnership of this magnitude truly reflects the commitment of the Children’s Cabinet. It demonstrates a willingness and desire by state government, the Maine community and the Brazelton Touchpoints Center to generate policies and procedures that are evidence-based and truly family-centered, bridging the practice models of home visiting, child welfare, infant mental health and other important early care and education providers. Visit Touchpoints.org for more information.