Since 1996, the CAPC coalition sites at the Aboriginal Friendship Centres in Duncan and Port Alberni have offered the Healthy Children, Healthy Futures (HCHF) Parenting Program. They have periodically updated the program content and have provided training to new facilitators.  The HCHF Facilitator Training Program is the first step leading to becoming a facilitator in the modular based parent education and discussion program. They train a combination of parents from the CAPC programs and staff working within and outside of the Coalition member agencies to facilitate their own version of the 14 module-parenting program. On November 19^th and 20^th, Hiiye'yu Lelum (The House of Friendship) Society offered this two day training program to a group consisting of community health representatives from the H'ulh-etun Health Society, the Malahat Nation, four staff members from partnering organizations, one family support worker and two grannies from their CAPC program. The training was delivered by Greta Pearson, a long time HCHF Facilitator and HCHF Coordinator Mark Turner.

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The Healthy Children, Healthy Futures Program

All of the staff working at the Duncan and Port Alberni CAPC sites have taken the Facilitator Training. While the two sites both deliver the 14 modules, they adapt and tailor the delivery, length, and content of each module to the group of parents and caregivers attending. The module topics are:

• The Big Picture: How past experiences impact our worldview or approach as a parent
• Pre and Post Natal Care
• Caring about Children in Care
• Living with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD)
• Daily Living – Food, Fitness and Fun
• Abuse Awareness and Prevention
• Child Safety and First Aid
• Relationships and Communication
• Anger and Conflict
• Stress Prevention and Recreation
• Goal Setting and Problem Solving
• Discipline and Responsibility
• Challenging Behaviours in Children
• Community Resources and Peer Support

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The two-day training session has been developed to mimic an extended version of the group setting the facilitators will be working in after training. Instead of a two+ hour-long group, they follow a similar model spread out over two days.  The first day starts with check-ins, getting acquainted and group rules. Energizers and breaks offer participants a chance for self-care, while group discussions and interactive exercises allow the new facilitators a chance to practice their new skills. The first day ends with a soft closing and looks much like a short break would.

The second day consists of more in-depth discussions, an evaluation collage, and a recap of the training and what has been learned. The training always concludes with recognition awards.

Training as a Stepping Stone

Mark reflected that the HCHF Facilitator Training has acted as a stepping-stone for program participants/members of the community who are or become interested in returning to school or re-entering the higher paid work force. The facilitating skills taught via this training program and the practical experience one receives while delivering the program are transferable to many career areas. The Healthy Children Healthy Futures modules themselves are written so they are easily adaptable to any community as the program style and topics build on local knowledge, uses resources from our communities, and encourages participants to share their personally valuable ways on being a parent and living in community.

Sharing the HCHF Training Program

Mark and his team in the Healthy Children, Healthy Futures coalition are interested in sharing their locally developed and updated approach to group facilitation and the modular based, peer-facilitated parent education and discussion program Healthy Children Healthy Futures. For more information on the modules, to set up a training session in your community, or to access any of the connected resources, please email Mark at hchf.hof@shawcable.com.