Nurse-Family Partnership

The Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) is an evidence-based, nurse home visitation program that improves the health, wellbeing and self-sufficiency of low-income, first-time parents and their children. NFP nurse home visitors work with their clients to achieve three important goals:

• Improves pregnancy outcomes by helping women engage in good preventive health practices, including obtaining thorough prenatal care from their healthcare providers, improving their diet, and reducing their use of cigarettes, alcohol and illegal substances
• Improve child health and development by helping parents provide responsible and competent care
• Improve the economic self-sufficiency of the family by helping parents develop a vision for their own future, plan future pregnancies, continue their education and find work

Program Format

The nurse home visitors and their clients make a 2 1/2 year commitment to one another with a number of planned visits: during pregnancy – 14; during infancy – 28; and during toddler-hood 22. Nurse home visitors' caseloads is about 25 families, due to the high level of complexities and health risks of families served

Who benefits from the program?

Nurse-Family Partnership clients are low income, first-time mothers, whose participation is voluntary. Because enrollment early in pregnancy is essential to the success of the program, implementing agencies partner with community referral sources who are likely to encounter women early in their pregnancies. The clients' partner, extended family and friends are encouraged to participate in the home visits when the client and nurse agree it is appropriate.

Personnel

     - Egondu Onuoha, MS, RD, CDN, IBCLC, CDE, Program Director
     - Marcia Phillips, RN, MS, MP, Nurse Supervisor

Expected Outcomes