The days when child care workers visited a family with problems and told them how to "fix'' things are over, says an American consultant visiting Bermuda.

Today, the emphasis is placed on helping a family build on its strengths, not pointing out its weaknesses, said Ms Mary Anne Doan.

Ms Doan, who is from Albuquerque, New Mexico, conducted a three-day workshop called "Growing -- Birth to Three'' at the Child Development Programme. It wrapped up yesterday.

About 16 CDP staff members learned about a new approach to the existing Portage programme for developmentally delayed children. It centres on "family-guided intervention.'' "In the past, intervention really focused on the parent as being a facilitator,'' said Ms Doan, who helped develop the new approach. "We taught the parent how to teach the child development skills.

"What we're now doing is going in and saying, `What does the environment have to offer? What are the strengths the parents already have in place? What's already in place that is working?'' The field has also increasingly moved away from court-ordered intervention and "mandated services,'' Ms Doan said. "We really would like to feel that the parents and the home intervention (workers) are partners. We have a much better relationship that way.'' Ms Conchita Ming, the CDP coordinator, said her workers see about 45 special needs children and the programme is in contact with about 600 families a year.

The CDP is a support service for families with pre-school children. It is based on the belief that early intervention can enhance the ability of parents to support and foster the optimal development of their children.

Ms Jennifer Manders, the Portage Programme supervisor at the CDP, said even a family which has drug or alcohol problems or which might otherwise be called "dysfunctional'' has something positive to build on.

"Is everything dysfunctional?'' she asked. "Probably not. You find an informal support system for that family that is able to provide them with helpful support, and just find what their resources are so they can get their needs met.'' Ms Doan said that at any given time, any family functions at the level at which it knows how to function.

To give an unusual example, it has been shown in the United States that families on welfare "have figured out very much how to use the system,'' Ms Doan said. "They are very functional, because they know how to get what they need when they need it.

"If they could turn that around so they could help other families...they could be of great help to other people.'' Ms Mary Anne Doan