This can be accomplished through the development of a more regular and systematic approach to monitoring process dimensions of quality, additional attention to the continuing development needs of its teaching workforce, by strengthening connections between ECEC and the health care system, and by strengthening the diagnosis and support of children with special needs. The infant mortality rate, which provides an overall indication of child health, is relatively low in Lithuania, at 3.3 deaths per 1 000 births in 2015 as compared to 9.8 on average in Europe, and has declined dramatically over the last twenty years, from 12.4 deaths per 1 000 live births in 1995 (WHO, 2016). Child poverty among young children has been declining in Lithuania. While 28% of children under age 6 were at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2010 (i.e. at risk of deprivation, including low levels of stimulation in-home environments, poor nutrition and health care, and exposure to economic stress), the share had decreased to 19% by 2014, below' the EU-28 average of 26% (Eurostat, 2016a).