The Newborn Home Visiting Program:
A gateway to healthy families and homes
The Newborn Home Visiting Program (NHVP) strives to give infants a healthy start in life. The program targets the DPHO neighborhoods of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brownsville, Bushwick, East New York, East Harlem, Central Harlem, and the South Bronx. In these communities, a health worker visits with each new mother to help create a safe and nurturing home for her infant. NHVP expects to offer more than 15,000 families a visit each year.
Mothers are either contacted by a Health Department staff member at the hospital soon after delivery or via telephone and mail. Mother’s identifying information is provided by the agency’s Office of Vital Statistics. While the program is entirely voluntary, most mothers readily agree to participate.
Special Focus: Breastfeeding
Breastfeeding exclusively is recommended for the first 6 months of an infant’s life. Providing support to a breastfeeding woman is critical in the weeks following the birth of her baby. Most of NHVP’s health workers are trained lactation counselors who can provide detailed instruction and advice to breastfeeding mothers. Second visits to mothers needing additional support may also be offered.
During the home visit, the health worker will:
- Provide information on key health topics
- Breastfeeding
- SIDS prevention and “safe sleep”
- Bonding and attachment
- Smoking cessation
- Health insurance and the need for a primary doctor or clinic (“medical home”)
- Screen for potential health or social problems (for
example, post-partum depression, housing instability, domestic violence) and
refer to a specialized provider or agency, as needed.
- Assess the home environment for the following
hazards: peeling lead-based paint, missing or improperly installed window
guards, missing smoke and/or carbon monoxide detectors, and rodents and
cockroaches. Referrals will be made to the appropriate enforcement
agency. For example, the agency’s Window Falls Prevention Program will
be alerted if window guards are absent or improperly installed, while lead
paint hazards may result in a referral to the Department of Housing
Preservation and Development.
- Arrange for a free crib (through the national Cribs for Kids program) for any family who needs one.
Read the NHVP brochure[Español] (PDF)
Read the NHVP Program Report (PDF)
