To mark the first ever Lane County Maternal Child Health (MCH) graduation ceremony on June 27th at Lively Park in Springfield, the program has released a report demonstrating its effectiveness at preventing a variety of negative health outcomes and social problems. Lane County Maternal Child Health is a section of Public Health that oversees several pro-family programs aimed at providing much needed stability to new families. MCH is graduating around 100 families in this first ceremony.
“It can be hard to understand how we can prevent things as different as heart disease and crime with one program, but that’s exactly what MCH does,” said Lane County MCH supervisor, Chelsea Whitney. “By investing in the stability of our families from the get-go, we see downstream benefits that extend over several generations.”
MCH offers a variety of parent support programs from pregnancy up to age 3. Nurses partner with families during pregnancy to support healthy pregnancy and birth outcomes and support the family in preparing for the new baby. Families can also enroll in services after the birth of their child to support parenting, child development, and assistance in navigating community resources. Among those programs, Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) has proven to be especially effective. The most recent report saw significant reductions in several key health indicators amongst NFP participants, namely:
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25% reduction in smoking during pregnancy
- 18% reduction in first preterm births (<37 weeks)
- 61% reduction in infant mortality (3.5 fewer infant deaths per 1,000 families served)
- 32% reduction in child maltreatment (through age 15)
- 47% reduction in youth crimes and arrests (ages 11-17)
“NFP has not only provided much needed guidance as a first time mother, it has literally changed my life,” said NFP graduate, Lisa Warmels. “Through my involvement, I was able to find employment, stable housing, and the peace of mind I needed to be able to do the best possible job I can in raising my baby.”
The full report is available upon request from Lane County Public Health.