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• Families with a prenatal diagnosis are not eligible for early intervention until their baby is born despite other developmental programs starting during pregnancy. • Families appraisals of their formal, intermediate, and informal supports to meet their desire for a positive, hopeful pregnancy and parenting vision varied. • Early Intervention could support families in meeting their prenatal goals that families' currently existing resources do not. In the United States, families whose infants or toddlers have a diagnosis that results in a high likelihood of developmental delay or disability are automatically eligible for early intervention (EI). When families know prenatally of this diagnosis, they are not eligible for EI until their baby is born despite other developmental programs starting during pregnancy. Seventeen families who had a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome shared their experiences with formal, intermediate, and informal resources during their pregnancy. Findings centered on families' appraisals of those resources to meet their desire for a positive, hopeful pregnancy and parenting vision. Implications are discussed for early childhood prenatal home visitors, early childhood professionals overall, and EI systems and professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasingly, families know prenatally of certain diagnoses with a high probability of developmental delays. These diagnoses could result in eligibility for Part C early intervention (EI) postnatally. Although prenatal developmental interventions (e.g., Early Head Start, Nurse Family Partnership) are common for families with environmental risks, no research has explored the potential of prenatal EI for those families with EI eligible diagnoses. This online survey research explored family and practitioner perspectives of potential prenatal EI and project-identified prenatal outcomes (i.e., health and well-being, parent-child interactions, parenting to family culture, and navigating systems and supports). Overall, both samples reported the prenatal outcomes were clear and important prenatally. Families preferred EI practitioners help with all outcomes. Practitioners preferred to take the lead on some outcomes (e.g., knowledge of and comfort with EI services, intention of EI), whereas the medical community took the lead on others. Findings support the need for further research on the potential of prenatal EI and resulted in implications for current postnatal EI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]