56 METIS NA TION Of ONT ARIO Annu A l Repo R t 20122013 Met I s He A l t H y B ABI es He A l t H y C HI l DR en MHBH c The MNO Metis Healthy Babies Healthy Childr en MHBHC pr ogram pr ovides nonclinical nonmedical r eview and supportive ser vices for Metis and other families who may be planning or be in the midst of a pr eg nancy or have childr en aged 0 6 years Thr ough the primar y inter vention ar eas of networking participant based education and dir ect client ser vice the MHBHC pr ogram pr ovides assistance to families in or der to fa cilitate the best opportunities for a healthy birth and the gr owth and development of their childr en within safe living envir onments Networking MHBHC coor dinators build upon existing r elationships with other stakeholders in or der to foster a collaborative spirit maximize r esour ces cr eate a str onger voice for the Metis perspective and develop the most ef fective pr ocesses for pr oviding ser vices Participant based education Ever y year the MHBHC coor dinators plan and deliver a variety of edu cationalsupportive gatherings that impr ove the capacity to thrive incr ease knowledge and skills and help to change the unhealthy attitudes and behaviours of participants MHBHC gatherings addr ess the MNO s educa tional goals as well as the local pr efer ences and needs of each community Dir ect client ser vices The most pr ominent aspect of MHBHC ser vice is the pr ovision of home visits and r eview of supports for Metis and other individualsfamilies The primar y goal of the pr ogram is to ensur e that families with young childr en ar e pr ovided equitable access to r esour ces and knowledge that will facilitate opti mal gr owth and development of childr enfamilies and pr omote the maintenance of safe family living envir on ments Thr ough training practice and ongoing support coor dinators ar e able to utilize inter vention strategies including advocacy r eferral wellness planning that help clients meet thei r needs p ro G ram de T a I ls Funder Ministry of c ommunity and Social Services Aboriginal Healing and W ellness Strategy AHWS Gover nment of o ntario n umber of s taf f 15 including supervisor shar ed with c AP c and c P n P pr ogram s taf f located in Bancr oft d ryden f ort f rances Midland n orth Bay r enfr ew Sault Ste Marie Sudbury t hunder Bay t immins W elland W indsor Maynooth and t or onto e ligible Clientele Any family with childr en ages 06 years old at risk Metis and others Community W ellness W orker Client s ervice Gr owth The chart above il lustrates t he total number of cl ient service encounters pr ovided by MNO C ww coor d inators during t he ind icated fscal years p art icipants in training mno facil itated for 20 a boriginal or ganizat ions in T or onto in m ar ch 2013