Healthy Families America
There is good evidence for the effectiveness of Healthy Families America in preventing child maltreatment. It is a national initiative to help parents get their newborns off to a healthy start. While participation is strictly voluntary, outreach is included in the initiative. Crucially, the home visiting is carried out by trained Family Support Workers rather than health visitors.
Healthy Families America (HFA) is an evidence-based home visiting program model designed to work with overburdened families who are at-risk for child abuse and neglect and other adverse childhood experiences. It is the primary home visiting model designed to work with families who may have histories of trauma, intimate partner violence, mental health and/or substance abuse issues.
This is a national initiative offering home visiting and other services to families in over 450 communities, with a ninety percent acceptance rate.
Summary of findings to date
HFA has a strong research base which includes randomised control trials and well designed quasi-experimental research. In 2006, HFA was named a ‘proven program’ by the RAND Corporation based on research conducted on the Healthy Families New York programs. To date, research and evaluation indicate impressive outcomes. Reviews of more than 15 evaluation studies of HFA programs in 12 states produced the following outcomes:
- Reduced child maltreatment;
- Increased utilisation of prenatal care and decreased pre-term, low weight babies;
- Improved parent-child interaction and school readiness;
- Decreased dependency on welfare, or TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) and other social services;
- Increased access to primary care medical services; and
- Increased immunisation rates.
