Keys to Infant Caregiving

Keys to Infant Caregiving is a research based educational program that provides important information on newborn and infant behaviour. It includes information on infant cues, infant states, state modulation and the importance of the feeding interaction.

The Keys to Infant Caregiving Program:

• Increases both provider and caregiver's knowledge of the infant's abilities
• Builds confidence and competence in parent/caregiver's care of their infants
• Assists providers in effectively sharing this knowledge with parents

The program is designed for health care professionals working in the community - Public Health Nurses, Hospital Nurses, Infant Caregivers, Paediatricians, Social Workers, Childcare Providers and Infant Mental Health Specialists.

Viewing and studying the Keys to Infant Caregiving videos are an essential part of using the Parent Booklets with families. The booklets are written at a 4th to 6th grade reading level and are meant as an adjunct to the discussion/teaching session with a family. The nurse/social worker/early intervention provider, et al needs to have a deeper understanding of the material in the parent booklets to be able to support learning and answer questions effectively.

The videos are best viewed as a group with a facilitator to promote discussion (with the study guide) about how the concepts can be integrated into practice with families. Brief homework assignments bring the material alive when it is directly applied to an intervention done with a family.

2021 Edition

The newly updated program includes:

• New video footage with a broader range of racial and ethnic diversity, including male caregivers
• Quicker pacing of content
• “Thought Bubbles” to help identify a babies’ needs and wants
• Newly updated 64 page study guide workbook which provides background information and strategies for applying the content of the new Keys to Infant Caregiving video series.

Engaging parents in open-ended, reflective questions about infant states, infant cues, infant behaviors, state modulation, and how important the feeding interaction is, provides the framework for giving instructional feedback. Using the parent booklet Infant Cues is an excellent reinforcement of the learning that occurred while the family watched the BabyCues®: A Child’s First Language video and subsequent BabyCue Card teaching.