Disclaimer :: This post contains sponsored content from My Health My Resources and is designed to bring helpful information to new and expectant mothers.
Family Connects supports parents by bringing health care providers, community resources, and families together. Its mission is to connect you with resources that nurture your whole family and support your child’s health and well-being.
And as a resident of North Texas, you may be eligible* to receive a free, in-home nurse visit courtesy of Family Connects North Texas.
What Can Family Connects North Texas Do for You?
Having a new baby affects many areas of a family’s life. Family Connects nurses are trained to answer all kinds of questions and are knowledgeable about the wealth of resources in our community. Here are a few examples of how Family Connects nurses can address your family’s needs:
- Baby weight check.
- Mom health check.
- Breast or bottle feeding help.
- Postpartum depression screening.
- Understanding childcare options.
- Understanding of new family dynamics.
- Back-to-work support.
- Help with bathing, diapering, and swaddling.
- Safe sleep information.
- Management of infant crying.
- Financial resources.
- Playgroups and parent support groups.
- Early literacy information.
- Family planning advice.
- Scheduling appointments.
- Healthy home connections.
What You Can Expect
Every family will receive the following:
- Scheduled visit: Visits are scheduled around three weeks after your baby’s birth.
- No cost to patients: As an eligible participant, you will not be charged.
- Registered nurse: All visits are made by highly trained nurses.
- Inclusive care: Helping all families regardless of income or background.
Community-Wide Effort
Research shows when families use Family Connects, mothers feel less anxious, learn about quality childcare options available to them, and their babies need less emergency care at hospitals. This all adds up to an enormous, positive impact on the community.
Aiming to reach all families with a newborn, Family Connects creates system change at the population level recognizing that the well-being of parents plays a critical role in laying a positive foundation for their child’s development. Through a partnership with Family Connects International, My Health My Resources joins efforts with local hospitals and the community in offering this voluntary, evidence-based, short-term nurse home-visiting program aimed at providing physical and mental health screening of both parent and newborn while also ensuring their connection to a medical home and other needed community resources.
In addition to increased child and family well-being outcomes, the ongoing randomized control trials have shown that infants had 50 percent fewer emergency room visits and overnight stays during their first year of life resulting in a savings of $3.02 for every $1 in program cost. The researchers have estimated that cities similar in size to Durham, averaging about 3,187 births a year, should expect to see $7 million in community health care cost savings in the first two years of a child’s life with a $2.2 million annual investment in Family Connects.
More information about Family Connects and other Early Childhood Services in Tarrant and surrounding counties are available on www.EarlyIsBestNorthTexas.org. If you have questions, call 844-NTX-KIDS.
Laura Kender is the chief of Early Childhood Services, a division of My Health My Resources of Tarrant County. Early Childhood Services serves more than 7,000 kids across 12 counties. Laura has more than 25 years’ experience in early child development.
*Currently serving babies born at THR Arlington and THR Cleburne. Soon to expand to other birthing hospitals.
