North Auckland, West Auckland > Public Hospital Services > Waitematā District Health Board (WDHB) >
Waitematā DHB - Mātua Tūhonongā (Infant Mental Health)
Public Service, Mental Health
Today
8:30 AM to 4:30 PM.
Description
Mātua Tūhonongā is a specialist Infant Mental Health service for families with a child under the age of 4.
We serve all families living in the Waitematā District Health Board area. We work alongside the Waitematā DHB - Maternal Mental Health Service.
Who are we?
We are a team of Infant Mental Health Clinicians with specialist training in Occupational therapy, Child Psychotherapy, Psychology, Psychiatry and Social work.
What to expect:
Our first meeting will be at the clinic or in the family’s home with one or two of our clinicians. We will discuss the concerns that prompted the referral and what our service can offer.
If it is agreed between the family and clinician to continue we will take some time to fully assess the difficulties that have brought the family to our service.
The family will then have the support of the team to decide on the best way forward and what intervention may be the most appropriate and helpful.
Interventions will always include the parents/caregivers.
Secure Beginnings:
Secure Beginnings is a 14-20 week programme designed to support a parent to recognise the strengths and struggles in their attachment relationship with their infants and preschool age children.
Secure Beginnings is based on the Circle of Security Programme, which offers parents a user friendly diagram to help them recognise and respond to their child’s emotional experience.
This programme is offered to parents either individually, or as part of a group.
Secure Beginnings is a joint service between Mātua Tūhonongā Infant Mental Health Service and Dayspring Trust.
Referral Expectations
Referrals to this service can be made by any professional including General Practitioners, Ministry of Education, Early Childhood teachers, Paediatricians, Child Development, Oranga Tamariki and Adult Mental Health services.
Families may also contact our service to make a referral
We see infants and toddlers with difficulties that are significant and outside what would be expected at their age and stage of development.
These difficulties might be with anxiety, feeding, sleeping, and/or behaviour. Parents and caregivers might be concerned for their child’s emotional wellbeing and social development. There may be a history of trauma that has significantly impacted on the child’s development.
Referrals can also be made to our service where the child’s primary caregiver is experiencing significant difficulty in their relationship with their child. This may be due to the parents/caregiver’s own past and present experiences.
Charges
Our service is free of charge for people entitled to free health care in New Zealand.
Hours
8:30 AM to 4:30 PM.
| Mon – Fri | 8:30 AM – 4:30 PM |
|---|
After hours and weekends, please contact the mental health acute/crisis team via North Shore Hospital Ph: (09) 486 1491.
Document Downloads
- Mātua Tūhonongā Brochure (DOC, 151 KB)
Travel Directions
For Directions to North Shore office
124A Shakespeare Road, located within the Marinoto Building
For Directions to the Waitakere Hospital office
Entrance A, Child Health Unit, Waitakere Hospital, Lincoln Road, Henderson
Parking
This is free parking for service usesr outside the Shakespeare Road office.
Website
Contact Details
Waitakere Hospital
West Auckland
-
Phone
(09) 486 8983
Email
Website
Child Health Unit Entrance
Waitakere Hospital
55-75 Lincoln Road
Henderson
Auckland 0610
Street Address
Child Health Unit Entrance
Waitakere Hospital
55-75 Lincoln Road
Henderson
Auckland 0610
Postal Address
Waitakere Hospital
Private Bag 93115
Lincoln Road
Henderson
Waitakere 0650
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This page was last updated at 11:24AM on October 7, 2021. This information is reviewed and edited by Waitematā DHB - Mātua Tūhonongā (Infant Mental Health).