Hospital-to-Home
TRUSTED SUPPORT. CONTINUOUS CARE. RIGHT FROM THE START.
About Us
Hospital-to-Home (H2H) is an evidence-based program that helps caregivers support their new baby’s development and wellbeing. H2H is an extension of CICC’s established Early Intervention Program — a program with a 50-year history of providing trusted in-home developmental coaching to families of young children with developmental risks or delays.
H2H provides holistic, family-centred guidance to caregivers of developmentally at-risk infants who are facing lengthy hospital stays in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
The service is trauma-informed and relationship-based, taking time to understand each family’s unique journey. Through coordinated support, we walk alongside caregivers—offering guidance, connection, and care that evolves with their baby’s growth.
In collaboration with our hospital partners, H2H provides a bridge of care, helping create a smoother, more supported transition home and into the community for families who need it most.
H2H is Different.
Many Early Intervention programs begin after a baby is discharged from the hospital.
H2H is different. H2H begins earlier—while the baby is still in the NICU.
This early connection changes the experience of going home.
It enables the Early Childhood Interventionist to form a trusting relationship with the family sooner—bringing peace of mind and easing the weight of the unknown as families prepare to go home.
With H2H, families leave the hospital with a key relationship already in place: a supportive professional who knows their story and will be there for what comes next.
What We Do.
Through H2H, each family is paired with a dedicated Early Childhood Interventionist (ECI): a consistent, trusted presence during a complex and often overwhelming time.
Support begins in the neonatal intensive care unit and continues in the family home, evolving alongside the child and family.
The Early Childhood Interventionist:
Why We Do It.
When a baby spends months in the hospital, families are navigating more than medical care. They are carrying uncertainty, hope, fear, and love, all at once.
The transition home, while hopeful, can also feel overwhelming. H2H exists to ensure that families do not navigate this time alone.
Built around both the baby and the caregiver, H2H recognizes that a child’s development is deeply connected to caregiver wellbeing. When caregivers feel well supported, they can breathe a little easier and feel ready to provide the care their baby needs during this critical time.
We are there early.
We stay.
We listen.
We guide.
About Us
Hospital-to-Home (H2H) is an evidence-based program that helps caregivers support their new baby’s development and wellbeing. H2H is an extension of CICC’s established Early Intervention Program — a program with a 50-year history of providing trusted in-home developmental coaching to families of young children with developmental risks or delays.
H2H provides holistic, family-centred guidance to caregivers of developmentally at-risk infants who are facing lengthy hospital stays in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
The service is trauma-informed and relationship-based, taking time to understand each family’s unique journey. Through coordinated support, we walk alongside caregivers—offering guidance, connection, and care that evolves with their baby’s growth.
In collaboration with our hospital partners, H2H provides a bridge of care, helping create a smoother, more supported transition home and into the community for families who need it most.
H2H is Different.
Early Intervention programs typically begin after a child is discharged from hospital.
H2H is different. H2H begins earlier—while your baby is still in the NICU.
This early connection changes the experience of going home.
It enables the Early Childhood Interventionist to form a trusting relationship with the family sooner, creating peace of mind, and reducing the worry for families feel about what will happen next.
With H2H, families leave the hospital with a key relationship already in place: a supportive professional who knows their story and will be there for what comes next.
What We Do.
Through H2H, each family is paired with a dedicated Early Childhood Interventionist (ECI)—a consistent, trusted presence during a complex and often overwhelming time.
Support begins in the neonatal intensive care unit and continues into the home, evolving alongside the child and family.
The Early Childhood Interventionist:
Why We Do It.
When a baby spends months in the hospital, families are navigating more than medical care. They are carrying uncertainty, hope, fear, and love, all at once.
The transition home, while hopeful, can also feel overwhelming. H2H exists to ensure that families do not navigate this this time alone.
H2H is built around both the baby and the caregiver. It recognizes that a child’s development is deeply connected to caregiver wellbeing. When caregivers feel well supported, they can breathe a little easier—and feel ready to provide the care their baby needs during this critical time.
We are there early.
We stay.
We listen.
We guide.
Guiding Principles
H2H is guided by principles that help ensure thoughtful, responsive, and impactful support.
In practice, we continuously strive to:
Our Collaborators
H2H reflects the strength of cross-sector collaboration across hospitals, community programs, and scientific research. We appreciate our collaborators for helping us bring this impactful program to families who need it most.
CICC gratefully acknowledges the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and Neonatal Follow-Up Clinic teams at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, whose participation has been foundational to the development and implementation of the H2H program. Their involvement as co-investigators of our original research study was essential to making this work possible.
H2H continues to support families in Toronto whose preterm babies are referred from the BOOST (Building Optimal Opportunities for Smooth Transition) program in Sunnybrook’s Level-3 NICU. We value the steady role Sunnybrook plays in helping families find their way to this support.
CICC is pleased to have expanded the H2H program to include Unity Health Toronto, St. Michael’s Hospital—an important milestone in H2H’s growth. Through this collaboration, H2H has been adapted to the needs of the St. Michael’s community and Level-2 NICU, helping extend support to more infants and families during a critical time.
CICC recognizes the Jang Lab at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE), University of Toronto, for leading the H2H research study and program evaluation. Their work has been central to shaping H2H as an evidence-informed model of care.
In Their Words...
Program Impact
The Impact Genome Registry™ is a global leader in evidence-based impact measurement, providing independent, third-party program validation across more than 2.2 million registered social programs worldwide.
Independent evaluation matters.
That’s why we’re proud that the H2H program has been rated and awarded the Impact Genome’s highest distinction: “Very Extensive”.
This distinction places H2H among the top 1% of programs within its Impact Genome category, a ranking it has achieved for two consecutive years.
What this means for current and prospective donors.
This means your investment is supporting a program that is proven to make a difference. Your donation is supporting a program that is not only compassionate and responsive, but independently validated and measurable.
Call to Action.
Please help us sustain and expand H2H so more children and families can benefit from this important work.
Want to learn more about H2H’s impact?
Visit: Journal Publication & Testimonials
Program Impact
The Impact Genome Registry™ is a global leader in evidence-based impact measurement, providing independent, third-party program validation across more than 2.2 million registered social programs worldwide.
Independent evaluation matters.
That’s why we’re proud that the H2H program has been rated and awarded the Impact Genome’s highest distinction: “Very Extensive”.
This distinction places H2H among the top 1% of programs within its Impact Genome category, a ranking it has achieved for two consecutive years.
What this means for current and prospective donors.
This means your investment is supporting a program that is proven to make a difference. Your donation is supporting a program that is not only compassionate and responsive, but independently validated and measurable.
Call to Action.
Please help us sustain and expand H2H so more children and families can benefit from this important work.
Want to learn more about H2H’s impact?
Visit: Journal Publication & Testimonials
Program Impact
The Impact Genome Registry™ is a global leader in evidence-based impact measurement, providing independent, third-party program validation across more than 2.2 million registered social programs worldwide.
Independent evaluation matters.
That’s why we’re proud that the H2H program has been rated and awarded the Impact Genome’s highest distinction: “Very Extensive”.
This distinction places H2H among the top 1% of programs within its Impact Genome category, a ranking it has achieved for two consecutive years.
What this means for current and prospective donors.
This means your investment is supporting a program that is proven to make a difference. Your donation is supporting a program that is not only compassionate and responsive, but independently validated and measurable.
Call to Action.
Please help us sustain and expand H2H so more children and families can benefit from this important work.
Want to learn more about H2H’s impact?
Visit: Journal Publication & Testimonials
Journal Publication
The Hospital-to-Home (H2H) program originally began as a formal research study, conducted collaboratively by the University of Toronto, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, and Centennial Infant and Child Centre.
Outcomes from this study highlight the value of early support for families and show why programs like H2H matter so much from the very beginning.
Starting Early Intervention sooner, especially before leaving the hospital, was linked to stronger improvements in caregivers’ mental wellbeing.
Ongoing, community-based Early Intervention that includes personalized support and developmental monitoring can help caregivers feel more confident and better supported in their role.
These findings were peer-reviewed and published in the journal Early Human Development:
Jang, E.E., Burns, S., Hunte, M., Chiarotto, L., & Church, P.T. (2024). Effects of early intervention on the mental wellbeing and caregiving practices of preterm infant caregivers. Early Human Development, 198, 106112. https://doi.org/10.10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2024.106112.
To read the full article, click on the image below.
Our Donors
Centennial Infant and Child Centre expresses its heartfelt gratitude to the Aubrey & Marla Dan Foundation (AMDF) for its unwavering support of the Hospital-to-Home program since its inception.
Since 2020, AMDF has been the program’s longest standing and most significant supporter, enabling us to support families during the most critical period in their infant’s neonatal journey.
We are also grateful to our own Foundation, CICCF, whose mandate is to work tirelessly to raise funds that sustain and support all of CICC’s programs, operations, and facilities. They help ensure our work continues.
We extend our sincere appreciation to all of our donors. To support the ongoing work of the Hospital-to-Home Program, please consider making a donation today.
Testimonials
Discover how the Hospital-to-Home Program has made a meaningful impact in the lives of families and individuals in our community!
Video testimonials
What families are saying
