Dr. Jorge Mata-Vargas is the Coordinator
of Services for Children with Disabilities & Mental
Health Needs for the Monterey County Head Start/Early
Head Start Program in California. He is also a Child
Study Team Member for the “Special Needs Demonstration
Project: Mental Health Consultation to Preschools” and
serves as a Certified Trainer for the Program for
Infant/Toddler Care. Dr. Mata is an Ob/Gyn Physician,
having received his M.D. from the Autonomous University
of Puebla, Mexico in 1990.
Dr.
Mata moved to the United States from
Mexico in 2000 after practicing medicine in the public
and private sector. Upon arrival, he began working for
the Monterey County Head Start/Early Head Start Program
as the Coordinator the Health Services. That position
quickly developed into the one he currently holds;
today, he works with teachers and families to facilitate
access to services for children with disabilities and
social emotional issues, and he provides training on
developmental and mental health topics, advocating for
the needs of at-risk families in Monterey County.
In addition to his primary work with
Monterey County Head Start, Dr. Mata also works on
several other projects to promote childhood
developmental health and to educate parents about
various mental health issues. For one, he is an
Infant-Parent Mental Health Educator for the Child Abuse
Prevention Council of Monterey County where he
incorporates the NMT developed by Dr. Perry and the CTA
into his training model. He also collaborates with the
Monterey First Five Commission and the Mental Health
Department Child Behavioral Health Division on the
implementation of the Mental Health Consultation for
Preschools in several California counties.
Dr. Mata is especially proud of his
independent work in using video analysis to assess the
behaviour of children referred to him as “difficult” or
“challenging.” With video aid, he has been able to
enhance his work with teachers and parents in
understanding and addressing childhood behavioural
issues.
Biography
