Integrated child heath: a blueprint for collaborative success

Background: This workshop explores the transformative potential of neighbourhood multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) in delivering integrated child health services for children and young people. Using the successful Connecting Care for Children (CC4C) model that is being implemented across the UK, we will demonstrate how collaboration between primary, secondary, and community care through MDTs can improve health outcomes, enhance experiences for families, reduce workload, and increase job satisfaction among professionals.

The workshop will offer practical strategies and tools to facilitate local implementation of integrated care, emphasising the vital role children, young people, and families play in shaping and delivering these services. Co-facilitated by a local parent and community leader with extensive experience working alongside CC4C on various projects, the session will incorporate lived experiences and provide valuable perspectives on embedding patient and family voices within integrated care initiatives.

Audience:This workshop is aimed at professionals and leaders working across child health, including general practitioners (GPs), paediatricians, health visitors, school nurses, mental health practitioners, paediatric dietitians and other allied health professionals, early years professionals, and service managers. These roles are integral to delivering integrated child health services and often involve implementing or improving MDT work within communities. Participation will be particularly beneficial for individuals seeking to strengthen cross-sector collaboration and ensure active involvement of patients and families.

Approach: The workshop will be structured into three key components:

1. Understanding integrated child health (25 minutes):

• Live polling: capture audience views on the meaning of integrated care
• Interactive quiz: clarify terminology and common misconceptions
• Overview of integrated child health principles using the CC4C model
• Case studies demonstrating impact

2. Practical guide to implementation (25 minutes):

• Parent co-presenter to share their story and reflections
• Patient involvement tools
• Interactive activity on understanding the local landscape and leveraging local data to inform service design and priorities
• Small group discussions: participants share their motivations for implementing integrated care and reflect on potential challenges within their own communities

3. Next steps and Q&A (10 minutes):

• Live polling: participants reflect on key takeaways
• Highlight next steps for developing integrated services locally
• Q&A session to address specific questions and share best practices

Outcomes: By the end of the session, participants will have enhanced their ability to:

• Describe what integrated child health looks like in practice and why it matters for children, families, and professionals.
• Recognise how neighbourhood MDTs can enhance care and support collaborative working across disciplines.
• Identify the unique value of lived experience in shaping local services.
• Apply practical tools and strategies for implementing integrated care within their own local settings.
• Explore effective ways to engage children, young people, and families as active partners in care.
• Identify common barriers to integration and consider practical solutions.

Participants will leave equipped with actionable insights and confidence to champion integrated child health, supported by real-world evidence and patient-centred approaches.