Nurse-Family Partnership in Rhode Island
RI
Nurse-Family Partnership® (NFP) is an evidenced-based community
health program that helps transform the lives of vulnerable
mothers pregnant with their first child. Each mother served by NFP
is partnered with a registered nurse to receive home visits from
prenatal through the baby’s second birthday. Mothers, babies,
families and communities all benefit.
NURSE-FAMILY PARTNERSHIP GOALS
1 Improve pregnancy outcomes by helping women
engage in good preventive health practices,
including thorough prenatal care from their
healthcare providers, improving diet and nutrition
as well as reducing the use of cigarettes, alcohol
and illegal substances.
2 Improve child health and development by helping
parents provide responsible and competent care.
3 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.
91%
89%
91%
babies born full term
babies born at a healthy
weight (>5.5 lb)
mothers initiated
breastfeeding
POSITIVE OUTCOMES
FOR Rhode Island
Cumulative data as of 12/31/16, clients served by
Rhode Island’s Nurse-Family Partnership.
MOMS’ DEMOGRAPHICS
AT ENROLLMENT
MEDIAN AGE: 20
89% UNMARRIED
66% RECEIVE MEDICAID
cumulative as of 12/31/16
RACE
20% Black/African-American
28% White
1% American Indian/Alaska
Native
2% Asian/Pacific Islander
3% Multiracial
46% Declined to self-identify
ETHNICITY
44% non-Hispanic/Latina
54% Hispanic/Latina
2% Declined to self-identify
10/1/10 – 12/31/16; all data is selfidentified
Nurse-Family Partnership in Rhode Island
Established In 2010
801 Families Served
3 Counties Served
1 Agency
Based on a review of 41 NFP evaluation studies, Dr.
Ted Miller of the Pacific Institute for Research and
Evaluation predicts that nationwide every dollar
invested in NFP will yield a return on investment to
government of $4.50 and to society of $8.10.
RI
NFP IN RHODE ISLAND
In 2005, the Successful Start
Steering Committee — Rhode
Island’s Early Childhood
Comprehensive System planning
group — identified establishing
a NFP program as one of its
core strategies. In 2010, funding
became available to establish a NFP
program through Children’s Friend.
Since its inception in 1834, the
mission of Children’s Friend has
been to promote the well-being
and healthy development of Rhode
Island’s most vulnerable children
by providing flexible, effective and
culturally relevant services that
support and strengthen families
and communities, which makes
them the ideal agency to implement
Nurse-Family Partnership. The
organization offers services
ranging from family counseling,
crisis intervention and fatherhood
initiatives to Head Start/Early Head
Start and also provides quality care
and education to children ages
three, four and five.
The Rhode Island NFP program
is rooted in strong, collaborative
relationships between several
partners. - Rhode Island KIDS
COUNT, a statewide children’s
policy and advocacy organization;
Children’s Friend; Bradley/
Hasbro Children’s Research
Center at Brown University
Medical School; and several state
agencies, including the Rhode
Island Department of Health, the
Department of Human Services,
and the Department of Children,
Youth and Families, all played a role
in launching NFP services in the
state.
FUNDING AND POLITICAL
CONTEXT
The Nurse-Family Partnership
program is a core component of the
state’s Maternal, Infant and Early
Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV)
program, which is managed by the
Rhode Island Department of Health.
In 2008, Rhode Island became one
of 15 states selected by the U.S.
Department of Health and Human
Services, Administration for Children
and Families (ACF) to receive a multiyear award to develop and implement
evidence-based home visitation.
Rhode Island KIDS COUNT served as
the initial grantee for the ACF grant
“Supporting Evidence-Based Home
Visitation Programs to Prevent Child
Maltreatment,” and led the planning
and initial implementation process to
establish NFP in Rhode Island.
The Rhode Island NFP program uses
multiple funding streams that include
the MIECHV Program, and the
Rhode Island Department
of Human Services
(Temporary Assistance for
Needy Families dollars).
In addition, Children’s
Friend can bill Medicaid
for three postpartum visits
under the “rehabilitative
and habilitative services”
category. The Rhode Island
Health Department is
actively exploring ways
to expand Medicaid
coverage for NFP.
NATIONAL RECOGNITION
“Programs such as the NurseFamily Partnership — in which
nurses visit first-time, lowincome mothers to provide
information on nutrition and
parenting — may be a more
focused (and cost-effective)
way to increase the school
readiness of at-risk kids.”
Michael Gerson, “Discipline, With Love,”
The Washington Post, Oct. 2, 2014
“…the Nurse-Family
Partnership, one of my favorite
groups fighting poverty in
America. It sends nurses on
regular visits to at-risk firsttime moms. The nurses warn
about alcohol
or drug abuse
and encourage
habits of
attentive
parenting, like
reading to the
child.”
Nicholas Kristof, “Cuddle
Your Kid!” The New York
Times, Oct. 20, 2012
National Service Office:
1900 Grant Street, Suite 400 • Denver, CO 80203-4304 • nursefamilypartnership.org
Interested in learning more about NFP in RI?
Please contact us at:
[email protected]