Nature and frequency of services provided by child and family health nurses in Australia: results of a national survey

2014 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
pp. 177 ◽  
Author(s):  
Virginia Schmied ◽  
Cathrine Fowler ◽  
Chris Rossiter ◽  
Caroline Homer ◽  
Sue Kruske ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Child Health ◽  
Health Services ◽  
National Survey ◽  
Health Centre ◽  
Family Health ◽  
School Entry ◽  
Child Health Services ◽  
Nursing Services ◽  
First Contact ◽  
The Impact

Objective Australia has a system of universal child and family health (CFH) nursing services providing primary health services from birth to school entry. Herein, we report on the findings of the first national survey of CFH nurses, including the ages and circumstances of children and families seen by CFH nurses and the nature and frequency of the services provided by these nurses across Australia. Methods A national survey of CFH nurses was conducted. Results In all, 1098 CFH nurses responded to the survey. Over 60% were engaged in delivering primary prevention services from a universal platform. Overall, 82.8% reported that their service made first contact with families within 2 weeks of birth, usually in the home (80.7%). The proportion of respondents providing regular support to families decreased as the child aged. Services were primarily health centre based, although 25% reported providing services in other locations (parks, preschools).The timing and location of first contact, the frequency of ongoing services and the composition of families seen by nurses varied across Australian jurisdictions. Nurses identified time constraints as the key barrier to the delivery of comprehensive services. Conclusions CFH nurses play an important role in supporting families across Australia. The impact of differences in the CFH nursing provision across Australia requires further investigation. What is known about the topic? Countries that offer universal well child health services demonstrate better child health and developmental outcomes than countries that do not. Australian jurisdictions offer free, universal child and family health (CFH) nursing services from birth to school entry. What does this paper add? This paper provides nation-wide data on the nature of work undertaken by CFH nurses offering universal care. Across Australia, there are differences in the timing and location of first contact, the frequency of ongoing services and the range of families seen by nurses. What are the implications for practitioners? The impact for families of the variation in CFH nursing services offered across Australia is not known. Further research is required to investigate the outcomes of the service provision variations identified in the present study.

Child Health Services in England and Wales: An Overview

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1990 ◽  
Vol 86 (6) ◽  
pp. 1032-1036
Author(s):  
Shirley Goodwin
Keyword(s):  
Health Policy ◽  
General Practitioner ◽  
National Health Service ◽  
Child Health ◽  
Health Service ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Social Security ◽  
Child Health Services ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
The Impact

Child health services in England and Wales are rendered largely through the National Health Service and Social Security. The activities of local authorities are also important to child health. The structure and scope of services offered children by each of these is presented and discussed, with special attention to changes anticipated during the next 2 years. The care of children is integrated into the system serving all ages, so that services are difficult to evaluate and resources are shared with other groups. Health policy for children is fragmentary, although encouraging trends are visible in the evolution of existing policy. The impact of impending changes in hospital, community, and general practitioner services on the care of children is unclear at this time.

scholarly journals Community involvement in reproductive health: Findings from research in Karnataka, India

2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keyword(s):  
Child Health ◽  
Reproductive Health ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Community Participation ◽  
Community Involvement ◽  
Child Health Services ◽  
Reproductive And Child Health ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Impact ◽  
And Child Health

In 1996, the government of India decided to provide a package of reproductive and child health services through the existing family welfare program, adopting a community needs assessment approach (CNAA). To implement this approach, the government abolished its practice of setting contraceptive targets centrally and introduced a decentralized planning strategy whereby health workers assessed the reproductive health needs of women in their respective areas and prepared local plans to meet those needs. They also involved community leaders to promote community participation in the reproductive and child health program. Since 1998, several evaluation studies have assessed the impact of CNAA on the program’s performance and community participation. These studies showed that the performance of the maternal health-care program improved, whereas the functioning of the family planning program initially declined but later recovered. The approach achieved little in boosting community involvement. This project tested a new model of health committee to help stimulate community participation in reproductive and child health activities at the village level. The experiment, described in this report, was conducted in the Hunsur block of the Mysore District in Karnataka for two years. Researchers evaluated the impact in terms of community involvement and utilization of reproductive and child health services.

scholarly journals Refashioning child and family health services in response to family, social and political change

2004 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Graham Vimpani
Keyword(s):  
Child Health ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Family Health ◽  
Community Response ◽  
Childhood Mortality ◽  
Child Health Services ◽  
Social Changes ◽  
Role Of Government ◽  
Health And Wellbeing ◽  
Industrialised Countries

Professor Graham Vimpani is head of the Discipline of Paediatrics & Child Health, University of Newcastle.One hundred years ago maternal and child health services emerged as a community response in Australia, and most other industrialised countries, to concerns about the high rates of infant and early childhood mortality from infectious disease and poor nutrition. Major family and social changes over the past 30 years have impacted in new ways on children's health and wellbeing leading to a profound rethink about the kinds of services that are needed. At the same time, second thoughts have emerged about the role of government in service provision, driven by neoliberal and rational economic philosophies as outlined in the paper in this issue by Keleher and Reiger (2004). Together, these issues have challenged the very foundations on which the services were traditionally based.

The Rand Health Insurance Experiment for Children

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1985 ◽  
Vol 75 (5) ◽  
pp. 969-971
Author(s):  
ROBERT J. HAGGERTY
Keyword(s):  
Health Insurance ◽  
Child Health ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Child Health Services ◽  
Office Visits ◽  
Older Children ◽  
Goods And Services ◽  
Rand Health Insurance Experiment ◽  
The Impact

Results of the Rand Health Insurance Experiment (the largest controlled trial of the impact of different amounts of copayment for child health services ever conducted) published in this issue of Pediatrics1 are a cause for concern among pediatricians. Two questions are posed by these studies. First, is the use of child health services price dependent or, in other words, do children use less health care if there is more out-of-pocket cost? The answer is yes, but mainly for office visits, not hospitalizations, for older children. This finding does not surprise most pediatricians. Most goods and services in our society are sensitive to price.

scholarly journals A retrospective study of the impact of health worker strikes on maternal and child health care utilization in western Kenya

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael L. Scanlon ◽  
Lauren Y. Maldonado ◽  
Justus E. Ikemeri ◽  
Anjellah Jumah ◽  
Getrude Anusu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Child Health ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Maternal And Child Health ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Child Health Services ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Western Kenya ◽  
The Impact ◽  
And Child Health ◽  
Risk Ratios

Abstract Background There have been dozens of strikes by health workers in Kenya in the past decade, but there are few studies of their impact on maternal and child health services and outcomes. We conducted a retrospective survey study to assess the impact of nationwide strikes by health workers in 2017 on utilization of maternal and child health services in western Kenya. Methods We utilized a parent study to enroll women who were pregnant in 2017 when there were prolonged strikes by health workers (“strike group”) and women who were pregnant in 2018 when there were no major strikes (“control group”). Trained research assistants administered a close-ended survey to retrospectively collect demographic and pregnancy-related health utilization and outcomes data. Data were collected between March and July 2019. The primary outcomes of interest were antenatal care (ANC) visits, delivery location, and early child immunizations. Generalized estimating equations were used to estimate risk ratios between the strike and control groups, adjusting for socioeconomic status, health insurance status, and clustering. Adjusted risk ratios (ARR) were calculated with 95% confidence intervals (95%CI). Results Of 1341 women recruited in the parent study in 2017 (strike group), we re-consented 843 women (63%) to participate. Of 924 women recruited in the control arm of the parent study in 2018 (control group), we re-consented 728 women (79%). Women in the strike group were 17% less likely to attend at least four ANC visits during their pregnancy (ARR 0.83, 95%CI 0.74, 0.94) and 16% less likely to deliver in a health facility (ARR 0.84, 95%CI 0.76, 0.92) compared to women in the control group. Whether a child received their first oral polio vaccine did not differ significantly between groups, but children of women in the strike group received their vaccine significantly longer after birth (13 days versus 7 days, p = 0.002). Conclusion We found that women who were pregnant during nationwide strikes by health workers in 2017 were less likely to receive WHO-recommended maternal child health services. Strategies to maintain these services during strikes are urgently needed.

scholarly journals The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Maternal and Child Health Services in Rwanda

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 221-222
Author(s):  
Olive Tengera ◽  
Jean Pierre Ndayisenga ◽  
Donatilla Mukamana ◽  
Alice Muhayimana ◽  
Josephine Murekezi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Child Health ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Maternal And Child Health ◽  
Child Health Services ◽  
The Impact ◽  
And Child Health

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