Bridging Community and Clinical Practice Through Shared Learning in Child Health

Background: Connecting Care for Children (CC4C) is a North West London integrated care initiative that brings together clinicians and multi-disciplinary team members across primary and secondary care to deliver collaborative care for children. As part of CC4C, the Children’s Health and Advice Tips (CHAT) programme provides accessible guidance and resources on key child health topics, supporting families through delivery within local Family Hubs and community networks. Family Hubs are community centres where families can access support and services for children and young people locally.

 

The CHAT programme aims to build parental confidence, address everyday health needs and enhance the support available within local communities.

Community professionals are often the first point of contact for families seeking advice and reassurance about their children’s health. From early developmental concerns to managing common childhood illnesses, these professionals play a pivotal role in supporting families to make informed decisions.

 

However, access to consistent, evidence-based information can vary across settings, leading to differences in the guidance families may receive.

This project was established to address this challenge by bringing together community and clinical teams to explore shared learning needs. It aims to foster collaboration, promote mutual understanding and ensure that families receive clear, high-quality and aligned health advice.

 

Approach: Co-designed by CC4C clinicians, the first phase focuses on identifying areas of shared learning and professional confidence. An interactive quiz-based tool was developed to explore baseline knowledge and understanding of key child health topics including child development, fever management and toilet training.

The tool is used as an engagement resource to encourage discussion and reflection. Insights from responses and resulting conversations are being used to highlight strengths, reveal variations in understanding and inform the co-development of future training and educational materials to be embedded within Family Hubs.

 

Results: This work involves a wide range of professionals, including those with formal child health training and those in community-facing roles where families commonly seek advice. Participants include paediatric trainees, GPs, GP registrars, pharmacists, foundation doctors, health visitors, family champions and early years practitioners. Collectively, these groups represent key points of contact for families navigating everyday health concerns.

The quiz format has proven effective in creating a supportive environment for shared reflection and encouraging open dialogue across professionals. We have thus far received 18 responses. The greatest variation in responses were found in questions related to newborn weight loss, exercise advice and speech and language development.

 

Implications: The early phase demonstrates the value of initiating integrated care improvement through collaboration and shared exploration. By focusing on what professionals can learn together, the project is fostering trust, mutual respect and a sense of shared purpose across community and clinical settings.

 

These foundations will directly inform the next phase of co-designed training and education, with the long-term goal of enhancing integration between services. This project aims to empower professionals, strengthen community capacity and help families feel more confident managing common child health concerns close to home, ultimately improving outcomes for children and families across North West London and beyond.