Contact: Debra Thompson
Assoc. Director, PR & Communications
540-564-5886
The RMH Family Care Nurse Program has received a $10,000 grant from the Family and Children’s Trust Fund (FACT) to provide free home visits by nurses to new moms and their infants with high needs.
The RMH Family Care Nurse Program provides risk assessment, education and support to all families after the birth of their babies at RMH. Parents screened as having high needs, including education and language barriers and medical concerns, will be eligible for a free home visit by a trained RMH family care nurse.
The FACT grant will help provide free home visits to 95 of the most high-need mothers, said Sabrina Shifflett, RN, director, RMH Family BirthPlace. Nurses began making visits July 1.
“I’m glad we can offer this service to parents who need it most,” Shifflett said. “It offers new parents the support they need in a very timely manner, right when they need it most. Having a baby can be very stressful. Our trained nurses are experts in what’s going on with mom and baby, and they offer multiple resources and guidance.”
In home visits, trained family care nurses help new moms make follow-up appointments with their pediatrician and obstetrician. They teach techniques for staying calm when the baby is crying, as well as car seat safety, caring for siblings, assessing birth control options and transitioning back to work. Nurses also provide moms with a community resource guide.
This service is available for a fee to families who are not determined to have high needs. However, Shifflett noted, many free resources also are offered to all families who have a baby at the RMH Family BirthPlace. These include a complimentary visit with a lactation consultant and free new parent classes, including New Moms Ask a Nurse and All About Baby.
Since 1986, the Family and Children's Trust Fund (FACT) has worked to encourage public/private partnerships to prevent and treat family violence in Virginia. The Family and Children’s Trust Fund is administered by a Board of Trustees appointed by the Governor to raise and distribute funds to local communities for family violence prevention, treatment and public awareness throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia.