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Volume 12 Issue 1   March 2009

New Mexico Association for Infant Mental Health
(NMAIMH) Annual Meeting

by Deb Harris, NMAIMH President

The NMAIMH annual meeting took place on January 21, 2009 at the United Way of Central New Mexico. In addition to the business agenda, which included a summary of the annual report, financial report and announcement of new board of directors, participants heard a presentation from Tanya Warren on The Intersection of Trauma and Attachment in Infants and Toddlers. Over 75 people participated in the meeting. It was wonderful to see so many new faces joining the Board as well as long-time members for this gathering. The Association welcomes the newly elected Board of Directors and continuing Directors. We thank Marcia Moriarta, outgoing Board President, for her leadership this past year.

Marcia Moriarta presented highlights of the 2008 Annual Report, which is available on the Association’s web site. A major accomplishment of the NMAIMH is an increased workforce through the implementation of the Endorsement for Culturally Sensitive Relationship-Based Practice Promoting an Infant Mental Health System. As of December 2008, seven professionals have been endorsed at level 2 (Infant-Family Specialists), seven at level 3 (Infant Mental Health Specialists), 11 at level 4 (2 Infant Mental Health Mentors - Policy and 9 Infant Mental Health Mentors-Clinical). Endorsed professionals are located in Farmington, Silver City, Farmington, Santa Fe, Rio Arriba County and Albuquerque. Currently, the NMAIMH has over 40 applicants working with advisors and over 83 inquiries have been received since the implementation of the endorsement process.

The NMAIMH has been very active in the national dialogue around building a competent infant mental health workforce and colleagues around the country view our Association as a national leader in the promotion of infant mental health and competency-based workforce development.

Thank you to those who joined us on January 21, we hope you will join us as members as well. With your support New Mexico can move closer to creating a cohesive system of care for families with young children. Members have access to networking opporunties, subscription to the listserv, notification of professional development activities, and access to a nationally recognized endorsement system for infant-family practitioners. For more information on the New Mexico Association for Infant Mental Health, please go to our website at www.nmaimh.org/index.php.