Healthcare Professional Champion of the Year

The Early Childhood Education and Care Department (ECECD) is seeking nominations for our inaugural Early Childhood Healthcare Professional Champion of the Year. The Early Childhood Healthcare Champion is someone who has demonstrated a strong commitment to promoting and/or linking families to Home Visiting and/or Family Infant Toddler (FIT) services in their community.

For the purposes of this nomination, a healthcare professional includes, but is not limited to, physicians, nurses, physician assistants, medical assistants, social workers, community health workers, lactation consultants, doulas, midwives, clinical care assistants, and pharmacists. The healthcare champion will receive an award from ECECD, be honored during Early Childhood Day during the 2025 legislative session, and be offered the opportunity to be featured in a marketing campaign targeting healthcare professionals to increase their awareness of Home Visiting and FIT.

Please submit your nominations by 5:00 PM on January 31, 2024.

Questions? Contact Colleen Lambert, ECECD Prevention, Health & Wellness Director at colleen.lambert1@ececd.nm.gov

Who is the champion?

The award recognizes individuals who are doing an exemplary job or going above and beyond to promote or foster referrals to Home Visiting and/or Family Infant Toddler (FIT) programs. When nominating a champion consider the following:

a) Leadership: Promoting referrals to services in their community or individual practice.

b) Collaboration: Collaborating with others and following up with Home Visiting and/or FIT providers to ensure successful referrals and/or to improve systems.

c) Innovation: Using creative strategies to promote Home Visiting or FIT programs or using innovative strategies to eliminate challenges in working within these systems at the local and/or state level.