Feasibility of a Mental Wellbeing Program for Rural Family Childcare Home Providers

Childcare providers experience a variety of mental and physical challenges that impact their personal wellbeing as well as the quality of care they provide for children. Rural family childcare (FCCH) providers--an individual who professionally provides care to children within their home--may especially need resources to support their physical and mental wellbeing. An existing program, Here For You, For Them (HERE), may be able to support these providers; however, previous testing of the program has only been conducted in childcare centers. Therefore, the purpose of this pilot study was to assess the acceptability and feasibility of the HERE program for rural FCCH providers. 27 rural FCCH providers took part in a 16-week pilot study of the HERE program focused on mindfulness techniques and practices. Participants attended a monthly virtual training and received an activity pack consisting of different activity ideas including breathing techniques, mantras, yoga poses, and yoga stories. Participants completed bi-weekly implementation surveys and a post-intervention survey and semi-structured interview. Overall, the breathing activities were one of the most implemented activities and took the least amount of time (< 5 min). Providers stated they enjoyed the flexibility of the program and the activities but felt some of the yoga poses and stories were difficult to implement. Common barriers included challenges with children's behavior and the age of children as well as time constraints. Overall, the HERE program appeared feasible and acceptable for rural FCCH providers. Future efforts should consider providing additional wellbeing support for FCCH providers.