Infant Mental Health Specialist Endorsement® Requirements

• Master of Arts (MA), Master of Science (MS), Master of Education (MEd), Doctor of Education (EdD), Master of Social Work (MSW), Master of Nursing (MSN), Doctor of Psychology (PsyD), Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Medical Doctor (MD), Doctor of Osteopathy (DO), or other degree specific to one’s professional focus in infant mental health; university certificate program; and/or course work in areas such as infant development (prenatal up to 36 months), familycentered practice, cultural sensitivity, family relationships and dynamics, assessment, and intervention must be submitted in accordance with the Competency Guidelines®
• Unofficial transcripts from all degrees and from any college credits earned are required.

2 years, post-graduate, supervised work experiences providing culturally sensitive, relationship-focused, IMH services. This specialized work experience must be with both the infant/toddler (birth to 36 months) and their biological, foster, or adoptive parent on behalf of the parent-infant relationship. 

• IMH services will include parent-infant/child relationship-based therapies and practices and early relationship assessment and can include concrete assistance, advocacy, emotional support, and developmental guidance. 
• These therapies and practices are intended to explicitly address issues related to attachment, separation, trauma and unresolved grief and loss as they affect the attachment relationship, development, behavior and care of the infant/child.  The unresolved losses, or “ghosts,” might be from adverse childhood experiences that occurred during the caregivers’ own early childhood or may be related to more current circumstances for the infant/child and family, such as a difficult labor and delivery.  Strong feelings, such as grief and loss, could also be associated with diagnosis or manifestation of a chronic illness, delay or disability. 
• Professionals from a variety of disciplines, not only licensed mental health professionals, may earn Endorsement if they have performed the work that meets this criteria.  However, the applicant will need to have received the training necessary to provide this level of treatment/intervention AND receive reflective supervision/consultation from someone endorsed as an IMHS or IMHM-C about the treatment/intervention. 
  OR
• In some cases, one year of a supervised graduate internship with direct IMH practice experience as described above may be counted toward the 2-years paid work experience requirement if the supervisor of the internship is an endorsed professional (IMHS or IMHM-C). Applicant will submit description of internship for application reviewers’ consideration.

• Applicants will include as many hours of training and/or continuing education as necessary to document that competencies (as specified in Competency Guidelines®) have been met.
• For those whose degree is in a field that is unrelated to infant mental health, more specialized in-service training may be required to meet the breadth and depth of the competencies
• Training received will include the promotion of social-emotional development and the relationship-based principles and practices of infant mental health
• Minimum 30 clock hours required

Minimum of 50 hours required of relationship-focused, reflective supervision/consultation, individually or in a group, post-Masters, while providing services to infants/toddlers (birth to 36 months) and families. Provider of reflective supervision/consultation must have earned/maintained Endorsement® as IMHS or IMHM-C

Please note: At least one reference rating must come from someone who has earned Endorsement® as IFS, ECFS, IMHS, ECMHS, IMHM, or ECMHM. Reference raters must be familiar with the applicant’s capacity to implement infant mental health principles into practice Total of three required:

1. One from current program supervisor
2. One from person providing reflective supervision/consultation
3. One from another supervisor, teacher, trainer, consultant, colleague, or supervisee (if applicant is a supervisor)

1. Application will demonstrate that competencies have been adequately met through course work, in-service training, and reflective supervision/consultation experiences
2. Successful completion of the IMHS Endorsement® written examination, which includes a multiple choice and an essay portion

Minimum of 15 clock hours per year of relationship-based education and training, pertaining to the promotion of social-emotional development in the context of family and other caregiving relationships, of prenatal up to 36 months old, including the principles and practices of infant mental health (eg, regional training, related course work at colleges or universities, infant mental health conference attendance, participation in competency-based activities such as professional reading group, community of practice, mentorship group). For those who earn IMHS Endorsement® and provide reflective supervision or consultation to others, at least three of the hours of specialized training must be about reflective supervision/consultation

• Documentation of training hours is submitted annually with membership renewal via EASy