In our final Policy Forum of 2023, we are sharing short stories from across the state where voluntary home visiting programs made a significant difference in the lives of a mother and her child. Local home visiting programs assist families by pairing them with health, social service, and child development professionals. Through regular home visits, parents learn how to improve their family’s health and provide better opportunities for their children.
In 2024, the South Carolina State Legislature has the unique opportunity to expand home visiting services within South Carolina by investing $250,000 through Children’s Trust. This money will be matched 3 to 1 by the Federal Government and allow us to serve hundreds more families. In some cases, names, dates, and other identifiable characteristics have been removed or changed to maintain anonymity.
Ensuring a Healthy Childhood
Submitted by a home visiting provider in the Upstate
“In 2014, I began my career as a home visitor. In this role, I have the privilege of visiting first-time Medicaid-eligible pregnant women and their children. I truly enjoy helping my clients be the best parents they can be.
I had a female client who was in her mid-twenties when she enrolled in the fall of 2020 at 15 weeks pregnant. She gave birth to a healthy baby girl in spring of 2021. Her labor and delivery went well. The baby was happy and healthy, and mom was an attentive, loving mother.
At 6 months of age, her daughter was not crawling. After assessing the developmental stages, we discussed ways to help her daughter crawl and discussed possibly referring her to Babynet, if needed. At 12 months, she was not crawling or walking and would not put weight on her left leg when standing and holding onto mom’s hands.
A referral to Babynet was made with mom’s consent, and the child began physical and occupational therapy. She was not making progress with therapy and was referred to a pediatric orthopedic surgeon. She was diagnosed with congenital dysplasia of her left hip and scheduled for open left hip reduction surgery in fall of 2022.
A spica cast was applied and had to be worn for six weeks. Caring for her was stressful for my client. Having the support from her family and I helped her through this stressful time. Her daughter is fully recovered and is now walking, running and enjoying life with her family.
Home visiting provides education, support and many resources to mothers and their families. Assessing for depression, anxiety, intimate partner violence, health habits and developmental milestones are just a few tools that are used to help navigate the needs of this vulnerable and often neglected population. It is important prenatally, postnatally, during infancy and toddlerhood. Our site alone has screened clients for pulmonary embolism, preeclampsia and infant failure to thrive, which all resulted in hospitalizations and treatment. These are potentially fatal diagnoses that were caught by nurse home visitors and treated.
By providing these services early on, we can help prevent complications and keep families healthy, which inadvertently contributes to a stronger community.”
An Ounce of Prevention
Submitted by a home visiting provider in the Lowcountry
“It can be hard to quantify the ways home visiting can influence a client’s life. Sometimes we think of successes like graduating school, going to well checks or getting a license. This part of my client’s success story focuses on something she did not become: a statistic.
She reached out to me, her home visitor, one day inquiring about discomfort when she urinated. She had reached out to her doctor and was told it would be a week before she could be assessed, despite displaying symptoms of a urinary tract infection.
My client was complacent to wait a week to be seen, however, as a registered nurse I knew the importance of prompt care. I was able to express concern regarding the risk of infection spreading as well as sepsis. The client had not realized the risks involved and after we talked, she too expressed concerns.
She decided it would be in her best interest to be evaluated by a provider sooner, so she began to inquire about urgent care. Then she ran into another barrier when she discovered the particular location she was going to go to would not accept her insurance.
I was able to provide several locations near her that did take her insurance. She was able to be seen and assessed later that day and day and started taking antibiotics right away, also having labs drawn to rule out the spread of infection. She completed all her antibiotics and no further follow up was needed.
This is a wonderful example of how a trusting relationship with a skilled and knowledgeable care provider can influence our clients’ lives. Had my client not felt comfortable with me, she would not have reached out.
It is hard to imagine that her 15-month-old son could have lost his mother to a treatable infection due to scheduling.”
A Mother’s Perspective
Submitted by a mother in the Midlands
“The home visiting program has made a remarkable impact in not only my child’s life, but my life as well.
I am truly grateful for the opportunities and resources provided by home visiting. Outside of helping my child meet developmental milestones, the program has always supported me mentally and emotionally.
With so many emotional hurdles as a new mom, I wouldn’t have made it to where I am now without the unflinching support of home visiting. Having my son during the pandemic was tough, and things became quite lonely with social distancing. My parent educator was always there for me. It truly made a difference.
In-home visits, as well as virtual visits, helped to restore my sense of companionship. I am a mother whose most difficult challenge was taking care of myself. Home visiting always reminded me that self-care is the best tool to help my child be his very best. For this, I am forever indebted to home visiting.
I am truly blessed to have been a part of something so profound.”
A Legacy of Health
Submitted by a pediatrician in the Piedmont
“About 22 years ago, I walked into an exam room where a mom and two tiny premature twins were waiting for me. From the moment I met her, I sensed her pride, hope, joy and love for her babies, along with her drive to do all she could to raise successful children.
For the next 18 years, I followed them closely, encouraging mom to quit smoking, treating their asthma, sharing in their accomplishments and listening to the challenges of the teenage years as they arose. They never missed a well check or a vaccine, and they both excelled in school.
At age 17, one started college, the other came to me with concerns of a missed period. She was pregnant.
After her baby was born, she brought her to me. By this time, grandmother was sick with cancer and on oxygen. This was filled with a desire to learn to be the best parent she could be just as her mother had been many years before.
I called a home visiting program, put the line on speaker phone and connected the new family with a provider who would make monthly home visits—assessing milestones, sharing parenting strategies, age-appropriate books and games, and connecting them with community resources for the next five years.
Yesterday, I saw them back for the child’s 4-year visit. At this visit, as at every well check, I asked about whether the provider was still making visits. The young mother confirmed that indeed she was and how helpful the tools she had shared had been at every stage.
The 4-year-old sat next to me as we read a book, identifying letters, numbers, answering questions about each page. Her mother beamed with pride for her daughter from a few feet away, as did I for both of them.”
