View/Open - Dalhousie University

More documents

Recommendations

Info

type of home visiting they receive, is a somewhat complex matter, and is explained in the following pages. Welcome Baby follows a ‘monthly-visit, curriculum-based’ model, whereby home visitors provide emotional support, information on parenting and infant development, and connections to community resources; neither paid visitors nor volunteer visitors provide practical/instrumental assistance (for overview of program details, see Appendix L: Overview of Four Mixed-Delivery Home Visiting Programs, pages 285-287). The Welcome Baby curriculum was developed and written locally, and provides “age-paced” 13 information on everything from infant care to developmental milestones, and from stress management to post-partum depression. Welcome Baby operates within the fiscally and socially conservative environment of the state of Utah (Davis, 2010; Faulconer, 2011). Public funds are limited, and there is not a strong public support for universal programs. Indeed, less than half of all Utah County first-time parents qualify for any type of home visit(s) from the Utah County Health Department; as described in Section 6.2.4, those who qualify do so on the basis of identified risk factors. A key premise of Welcome Baby is the belief that “low-risk families can have high-risk days;” thus, extending support to these families may reduce emergent risks, as well as pre-existing risks which were not identified at the time of birth. Additionally, as one staff participant shared, while many of these families may be “pretty much smooth sailing” in the longer term, all new parents can benefit from current information on child development and parenting. Therefore, in order to extend home visiting and parenting support to as many first-time parents as possible in Utah County, two separate organizations, from two different sectors, have committed to delivering the Welcome Baby program – together. This 13 “Age-paced” refers to providing information about a child’s development at the time when the child is at or nearing that specific age. This is in contrast to providing information in one fell swoop (for example, via a parenting book). 99
equires an unusually high level of ongoing collaboration and operational interdependence. One of these organizations, United Way of Utah County, has both staff and volunteers who do home visiting through the Welcome Baby program. The other organization, the Utah County Health Department (through its Bureau of Child Health Services), has both nurses and (paid) outreach workers who visit families in their homes, but does not have any volunteer visitors. Because the focus of the present study is programs that house volunteer visitors and paid visitors within the same organization, this study was concerned primarily with the United Way component of Welcome Baby. Interviews were not conducted with any home visitors from the Utah County Health Department (UCHD). However, interviews were conducted with both the current and former Directors of the UCHD Bureau of Child Health Services. Together these participants provided an historical perspective of Welcome Baby and insight into the present-day partnership between the two ‘wings’ of the program. 6.2.2 The Local Context At the time of this study, Utah County had a population of roughly 545,000, (Utah State Data Center, 2010) most of whom lived in a 30-kilometre line of towns and small cities running north-south, wedged into the plain that lies between the Wasatch Mountains to the east, and Utah Lake to the west. According to U.S. Census Bureau figures, the state of Utah has the highest fertility rate in the United States (Bulkeley, 2005); in Utah County, there are 12,000 births each year, roughly 4000 of which are to first-time parents. This birth rate is fuelled by Utah County’s religious and cultural composition: according to study participants, 85% of the population belongs to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, while about 10% are Spanish-speaking Catholics; both communities have higher-than-average birth rates. As well, Utah County is home to two large universities, both of which have a high percentage of married Latter-Day Saints (Mormon) students. Indeed, 2005 Census Bureau figures showed that “in Utah, women married at a median age of 21.9 and men at 23.9 – both the youngest 100
Page 1 and 2:
Greater Than the Sum of Its Parts:
Page 3 and 4:
DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY DATE: 25 Novem
Page 5 and 6:
TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES ..
Page 7 and 8:
4.4 SUMMARY .......................
Page 9 and 10:
7.2.1 Identity (as perceived by par
Page 11 and 12:
8.4.1 Allows for Successful Impleme
Page 13 and 14:
LIST OF TABLES Table 1 Stages in th
Page 15 and 16:
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS USED CMP ECD
Page 17 and 18:
II. Other terms used in this thesis
Page 19 and 20:
V. Gender and language in this thes
Page 21 and 22:
The many colleagues, friends, neigh
Page 23 and 24:
However, while my search of the lit
Page 25 and 26:
daunting challenges linked to mothe
Page 27 and 28:
number of volunteer home visiting p
Page 29 and 30:
self-control” (Richmond, 1930, p.
Page 31 and 32:
fundamental to social work” (Inte
Page 33 and 34:
Parents Volunteer Service [ESP], 20
Page 35 and 36:
positive role models or people who
Page 37 and 38:
and the intersection of various for
Page 39 and 40:
A new measure of clarity and a deep
Page 41 and 42:
Finally, a growing body of literatu
Page 43 and 44:
However, with the exception of this
Page 45 and 46:
Despite gains in women’s equality
Page 47 and 48:
2.5 THE SERVICE DELIVERY CONTEXT: V
Page 49 and 50:
2.6 GETTING IT RIGHT: COUNTRIES INV
Page 51 and 52:
CHAPTER 3: REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE
Page 53 and 54:
esults, most notably from Hawai’i
Page 55 and 56:
3.2 PROGRAMS WITH PAID VISITORS 3.2
Page 57 and 58:
particularly those that discuss and
Page 59 and 60:
with quality early childhood educat
Page 61 and 62:
…the researchers limited the para
Page 63 and 64:
contradicted those of others; and,
Page 65 and 66:
with a volunteer to a paid visitor
Page 67 and 68:
the Board “was aware of models th
Page 69 and 70: Indeed, even in conducting the 2005
Page 71 and 72: visiting programs views a person in
Page 73 and 74: CHAPTER 4: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK He
Page 75 and 76: wages, instability, and unpredictab
Page 77 and 78: home visiting programs vary tremend
Page 79 and 80: they are experiencing (and internal
Page 81 and 82: & Dubus, 2005). Women’s partners
Page 83 and 84: children, hampering their ability t
Page 85 and 86: C. What external and internal facto
Page 87 and 88: often include observation, observat
Page 89 and 90: 1. In two of the study programs, th
Page 91 and 92: useful to those who want to learn m
Page 93 and 94: study. While I went into the study
Page 95 and 96: it would be necessary to omit detai
Page 97 and 98: Between February 2007 to April 2010
Page 99 and 100: 5.7.2 Contacting Eligible Programs
Page 101 and 102: 5.7.4 Confirming Agency Participati
Page 103 and 104: eadily confirmed that this was the
Page 105 and 106: A report’s ability to allow reade
Page 107 and 108: I also asked each Agency Contact Pe
Page 109 and 110: question. While participants from o
Page 111 and 112: CHAPTER 6: DESCRIPTION OF PROGRAMS
Page 113 and 114: In the 12 local areas where it oper
Page 115 and 116: and take onboard this Programme, to
Page 117 and 118: volunteer explained: “You know, e
Page 119: thought that the work could be cont
Page 123 and 124: partnership is larger-scale, and mo
Page 125 and 126: The Utah County Health Department n
Page 127 and 128: oader goal of developing a multifac
Page 129 and 130: order to help families get the supp
Page 131 and 132: needs and concerns range from the s
Page 133 and 134: Our range of socially inclusive ear
Page 135 and 136: egarding one’s concerns, and addr
Page 137 and 138: ‘Gateway,’ to serve families an
Page 139 and 140: provided parents with extensive inf
Page 141 and 142: Eight staff were interviewed. Four
Page 143 and 144: 7.1 OVERVIEW OF FINDINGS Participan
Page 145 and 146: Table 3: Responsibilities of paid s
Page 147 and 148: of the other, allowing each to acco
Page 149 and 150: the following sections, it was the
Page 151 and 152: employed by a health or social agen
Page 153 and 154: that front-line staff members be pu
Page 155 and 156: wasn't breastfeeding, [staff member
Page 157 and 158: One volunteer explained that “If
Page 159 and 160: manager could “be very flexible a
Page 161 and 162: all families, regardless of socio-e
Page 163 and 164: In all three programs, if a family
Page 165 and 166: Researcher’s reflection These pro
Page 167 and 168: 7.5 INCREASED COST-EFFECTIVENESS Se
Page 169 and 170: the volunteers consistently express
Page 171 and 172:
There have been huge spin-offs for
Page 173 and 174:
7.6.2 Orientated New Staff to the R
Page 175 and 176:
exactly what I am doing.” This kn
Page 177 and 178:
them to hone, maintain and pass on
Page 179 and 180:
have to ‘refer out,’ some famil
Page 181 and 182:
In comparison, Good Beginnings Aust
Page 183 and 184:
The manager stressed that the progr
Page 185 and 186:
Staff Members’ Work with Vulnerab
Page 187 and 188:
and passionate, I have included the
Page 189 and 190:
program as a whole, vis-a-vis havin
Page 191 and 192:
esidual system, eligibility criteri
Page 193 and 194:
post-partum home visit or telephone
Page 195 and 196:
Ironically, as documented in the Go
Page 197 and 198:
A Lack of Attention to Prevention A
Page 199 and 200:
Further, had health authorities inv
Page 201 and 202:
prioritize which families to serve
Page 203 and 204:
program], would it be possible? I d
Page 205 and 206:
that ... the resources would come t
Page 207 and 208:
[good] ... I could see that.” The
Page 209 and 210:
7.14.2 Managing Mixed-Delivery Prog
Page 211 and 212:
One manager reflected that ‘meldi
Page 213 and 214:
I. Programs could put to use, in co
Page 215 and 216:
A staff member may have taken over
Page 217 and 218:
expanding the number of families se
Page 219 and 220:
countries in question, as a widespr
Page 221 and 222:
Further, given that volunteer recru
Page 223 and 224:
acts as a vehicle for starting disc
Page 225 and 226:
services. However, participants fro
Page 227 and 228:
for some families, particularly tho
Page 229 and 230:
experienced paid staff member; volu
Page 231 and 232:
these families, a disproportionate
Page 233 and 234:
whereby those most at risk, and tho
Page 235 and 236:
Indeed, through my correspondence a
Page 237 and 238:
programs. The findings were filtere
Page 239 and 240:
However, given the funding challeng
Page 241 and 242:
8.7.4 Directions for Future Researc
Page 243 and 244:
7. How is volunteer home visiting v
Page 245 and 246:
CHAPTER 9: CONCLUSION In this chapt
Page 247 and 248:
9.2 OVERVIEW: CHALLENGES OF MIXED-D
Page 249 and 250:
Those considering such an approach
Page 251 and 252:
likely to engage and maintain invol
Page 253 and 254:
their parenting priorities; and by
Page 255 and 256:
and for the future (Acton, 2005). F
Page 257 and 258:
Bryce, H. (2000, August). Northern
Page 259 and 260:
DePoy, E., & Gitlin, L. N. (1998).
Page 261 and 262:
Heckman, J., & Carneiro, P. (2003,
Page 263 and 264:
Matusicky, C., & Russell, C. C. (20
Page 265 and 266:
Parents as Teachers (n.d.). Support
Page 267 and 268:
The Benevolent Society (2009, Octob
Page 269 and 270:
Appendix A: Introductory Letter to
Page 271 and 272:
Information on Extra Support for Pa
Page 273 and 274:
Continued - To be eligible to take
Page 275 and 276:
Please note: The focus of this stud
Page 277 and 278:
What is the purpose of this researc
Page 279 and 280:
What, if anything, will we gain fro
Page 281 and 282:
6. To designate an Agency Contact P
Page 283 and 284:
Outline of Duties - Agency Contact
Page 285 and 286:
In order to take part in this study
Page 287 and 288:
Letter to eligible home visitors: I
Page 289 and 290:
Appendix G: Information and Consent
Page 291 and 292:
You can take part in this study if
Page 293 and 294:
Confidentiality, continued: All re
Page 295 and 296:
SIGNATURE PAGE (Agreement to take p
Page 297 and 298:
Section I: Program History Particip
Page 299 and 300:
(5F). Some questions about funding:
Page 301 and 302:
5F. Some questions about funding: O
Page 303 and 304:
8E. If you could change anything ab
Page 305 and 306:
[Dalhousie University letterhead] A
Page 307 and 308:
Program Feature Programs that parti
show all

View/Open - Dalhousie University

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?