PRIDE

What is PRIDE all about?

PRIDE (Promoting Resources in Developmental Education) is an example of a community's response to working across agencies to improve the lives of young children and their families.  Through targeted education and training activities to parents, child care providers and primary care physicians, PRIDE raises awareness of typical child development as well as the early identification of those children who are at risk for developmental delays.  

1. How PRIDE helps PARENTS
2. How PRIDE helps CHILD CARE PROVIDERS
3. How PRIDE helps PHYSICIANS 
4. How YOU can help PRIDE
   

Where is PRIDE?

PRIDE is not a stand-alone agency, but rather a community collaboration led by The Gardner Family Center for Developing Minds at Children's Hospital of Greenville Hospital System University Medical Center, Patewood Campus.  Our address is:  PRIDE, 200 Patewood Drive, Suite A310, Greenville, SC  29615.  Our telephone number is:  (864) 454-2102. 

PARENTS

Child development refers to the process in which children go through changes in skill development during predictable time periods, called developmental milestones.  A developmental delay occurs when children have not reached these milestones by the expected time period. PRIDE supports parents through two unique educational programs: 

• Mind Your Milestones is a free educational series for parents consisting of informative cards that are mailed to parents at regular intervals from their baby's birth through age 5. Parents learn not only what milestones their child should be reaching in a certain age range, but what specific activities they can do with their child to promote healthy development in all areas of development (language, social/emotional/cognitive, or physical). Parents are encouraged to talk to their child's doctor if they have any concerns about their child's development.

If you have a child  under 5 years of age and would like to enroll in PRIDE's Mind Your Milestones free educational program, click here  to submit by email or call the PRIDE office at (864) 454-2102.

• Parent Enrichment Workshops  are offered throughout the year based on the principles of Positive Discipline. With extensive research linking healthy child development to effective parenting, it is essential that parents have the necessary tools to nurture their child's development.  The workshops are highly interactive and equip the entire family with tools and long-term strategies to effectively deal with topics such as discipline and misbehavior, conflict resolution, problem solving and healthy communication.

Current workshop locations for 2011 (click for location schedules and class descriptions):

•       Mauldin Cultural Center - Mauldin, SC - February
•       Mauldin Cultural Center - Mauldin, SC - March/April
•       Pediatric TEAM Center - Easley, SC
•       Other Greenville, SC workshops regarding:
                  Positive Discipline

                  Autism

To enroll in an upcoming workshop, call the PRIDE program office at (864) 454-2102 or email pride@ghs.org for more information.

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CHILD CARE PROVIDERS

Many early childhood educators say that they are sometimes the first people to raise concerns regarding a child's development, but often feel uncomfortable voicing these concerns to parents, and are unaware of the community resources available to the families.  PRIDE supports child care providers in Upstate counties by partnering with local agencies to offer formal training in early child development including appropriate developmental milestones, identification and assessment of developmental delays in young children, parent-teacher conference strategies and positive discipline techniques to use in the classroom.   PRIDE offers public trainings throughout the year, as well as the opportunity for on-site custom trainings.   PRIDE's child care trainings are certified by the South Carolina Department of Social Services and satisfy current continuing education requirements for area providers and are taught by SC Master Certified Child Care Trainers. The classes are Developmental Milestone Toolkit Training, Advanced Assessment of Young Children, and Positive Discipline for Child Care Providers.

Call the PRIDE office for classes scheduled in your area or to request information about on-site training at (864) 454-2102.

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PHYSICIANS

Early identification of developmental disorders is critical to the well-being of children and their families. It is an integral function of the primary care medical home and an appropriate responsibility of all pediatric health care professionals. In 2006, the American Academy of Pediatrics updated its policy statement on developmental surveillance and screening. The recommendations call for developmental surveillance to be incorporated at all well-child visits. In addition, a standardized developmental screening test should be administered at 9-, 18- and 30- month visits. Primary care physicians are of obvious importance in developmental screening because they have a unique perspective on a child's health and development and see him at regular intervals.   However, physicians cite several barriers to screening, including limited time, lack of reimbursement for screening, and the lengthiness of most screening tools. 

PRIDE supports primary care physicians in reducing or eliminating these barriers by providing physician resource guides to use in their practices.  These guides include the Parents' Evaluation of Developmental Status (PEDS) screening test.  This tool, developed by Frances Page Glascoe, PhD, has 10 short questions and can be completed in less than two minutes by the parents.  It has nearly 80% sensitivity and specificity in correctly identifying children with developmental delays.  In addition, the guide includes reimbursement coding procedures, supporting documentation and validation of other screening tools, and comprehensive community resource information and referral sources.

PRIDE also provides PEDS tool training and support to primary care physicians.  Staff members are available for consultation and technical assistance on cases in which the physician has questions on development or sources for referral.  Additionally, educational programs are offered to other medical professionals on evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment and available community resources and support for families.

For more information or to schedule a physician office training, contact PRIDE at (864) 454-2102 or pride@ghs.org.

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GET INVOLVED

PRIDE is funded in large part by The Duke Endowment as well as through local grants, corporate contributions, revenues generated by its educational programs, in-kind donations from its partners, and the United Way of Greenville County.  If you would like to contribute financially or volunteer to help in PRIDE's mission, contact Program Coordinator Jane Witowski at (864) 454-2104 or jwitowski@ghs.org.