PURPOSE: Nurses' home visits to new parents have been replaced in many high-need communities by nonprofessional visits without clear evidence of effectiveness. Previous reviews of home visiting research have combined nurse and non-nurse interventions and have pooled studies from the US, where home visiting is mainly limited to low-income families, with those from nations where home visiting is a universal service. This integrative review was focused on nurse-delivered interventions in the US and Canada to identify the nursing-specific models with the greatest effect in this cultural context. Evaluation of support for social ecology theory was a secondary aim. DESIGN: The sample consisted of 20 experimental and quasi-experimental studies of home nursing interventions for families of newborn infants who were vulnerable because of poverty, social risks, or prematurity. METHODS: Each report was examined systematically using specific rules of inference and a scoring system for methodological quality. Intervention effects on five outcome domains were described. FINDINGS: Maternal outcomes, maternal-infant interaction, and parenting were more often influenced than was child development, except in preterm infants. Well-child health care did not improve. Effective programs generally began in pregnancy, included frequent visits for more than a year, had well-educated nurses, and were focused on building a trusting relationship and coaching maternal-infant interaction. Social ecology theory was partially supported. CONCLUSIONS: Future nurse home-visiting research should test a combination of these effective components. Nurses can use this information to seek funding of nurse-delivered interventions for vulnerable families.
PURPOSE: Nurses' home visits to new parents have been replaced in many high-need communities by nonprofessional visits without clear evidence of effectiveness. Previous reviews of home visiting research have combined nurse and non-nurse interventions and have pooled studies from the US, where home visiting is mainly limited to low-income families, with those from nations where home visiting is a universal service. This integrative review was focused on nurse-delivered interventions in the US and Canada to identify the nursing-specific models with the greatest effect in this cultural context. Evaluation of support for social ecology theory was a secondary aim. DESIGN: The sample consisted of 20 experimental and quasi-experimental studies of home nursing interventions for families of newborn infants who were vulnerable because of poverty, social risks, or prematurity. METHODS: Each report was examined systematically using specific rules of inference and a scoring system for methodological quality. Intervention effects on five outcome domains were described. FINDINGS: Maternal outcomes, maternal-infant interaction, and parenting were more often influenced than was child development, except in preterm infants. Well-child health care did not improve. Effective programs generally began in pregnancy, included frequent visits for more than a year, had well-educated nurses, and were focused on building a trusting relationship and coaching maternal-infant interaction. Social ecology theory was partially supported. CONCLUSIONS: Future nurse home-visiting research should test a combination of these effective components. Nurses can use this information to seek funding of nurse-delivered interventions for vulnerable families.
Authors: Cathy L Guttentag; Susan H Landry; Jeffrey M Williams; Kathleen M Baggett; Christine W Noria; John G Borkowski; Paul R Swank; Jaelyn R Farris; April Crawford; Robin G Lanzi; Judith J Carta; Steven F Warren; Sharon L Ramey Journal: Dev Psychol Date: 2014-01-20
Authors: Linda C Pugh; Janet R Serwint; Kevin D Frick; Joy P Nanda; Phyllis W Sharps; Diane L Spatz; Renee A Milligan Journal: Acad Pediatr Date: 2009-10-23 Impact factor: 3.107