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Oregon Health Authority

Oregon's Public Health Home Visiting System

Home Visiting in Oregon: A Growing System

Home visiting is a proven strategy for strengthening families and improving the health status of women and children. Programs are voluntary and serve families with a variety of risk factors. Funding for programs comes from a variety of sources including federal, state, county, local and private funding.

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Family Connects Oregon is the new universally offered nurse home visiting program that will eventually be available to all families with a newborn in Oregon. 

This is a voluntary, opt-in program. No families are required to participate.

Family Connects Oregon nurse home visitors work with families to identify​ what families need and want from local resources, and then provides an individualized, non-stigmatizing entry into a community system of care. This system includes referrals to other, more intensive, home visiting programs, and health and social supports around the state, such as obstetricians and primary care providers, pediatricians and family practice physicians, child care options, mental health services, housing agencies and lactation support organizations.


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Family Connects Oregon​

In 2010, President Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which included mandatory funding over 5 years for high quality, evidence-based, voluntary early home visitation services to improve outcomes for children and families - Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV). This investment in home visiting helps ensure that more of America’s children have the opportunity to grow up healthy, safe, and ready to learn.

In Oregon, three home visit models are supported through MIECHV funding:

  • Early Head Start Home Based
  • Healthy Families America
  • Nurse Family Partnership

Programs are funded in 13 of Oregon’s 36 counties. MIECHV also supports systems development.​

Public health nurse home visiting programs operate out of local health departments with training and technical assistance provided by the State Public Health Division. Public health nurses provide comprehensive assessments, case management and individual teaching. Public health nurses help clients set goals for making healthy lifestyle choices and fostering personal growth.

Programs include:

Babies First! Nurse Family Partnership CaCoon​

  • Babies First!
    • Available in all Oregon counties except Multnomah, Curry, Umatilla, Wallowa.
    • Serves pregnant women, infants and children up to age 4 and their caregivers.
  • Nurse Family Partnership
    • Available in Deschutes, Jackson, Lane, Lincoln, Morrow, Multnomah, Umatilla, Washington, Yamhill counties.
    • Serves pregnant women and their child until age 2.
  • CaCoon
    • Availalbe in all Oregon counties except Multnomah, Curry, Wallowa, Malheur, Wheeler.
    • Serves children and youth with special health needs up to age 21.

Home Visiting programs in Oregon come in all shapes and sizes. The list below is not meant to be comprehensive of all Oregon programs nor are all these programs available in all areas.


Early Head Start - Home Based
Early Head Start (EHS) targets low-income pregnant women and families with children from birth through age 3, most of whom are at or below the federal poverty level or who are eligible for Part C services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act in their state. The program provides early, continuous, intensive, and comprehensive child development and family support services including education, health, dental, nutrition, mental health, family support and community coordination. EHS home visiting services (home-based) include weekly 90-minute home visits and two group socialization activities per month for parents and their children. To locate a program near you, visit http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/HeadStartOffices


Healthy Families Oregon
Healthy Families Oregon (HFO) is a family support and parent education home visiting program. HFO focuses on strengthening the parent-child relationship to assure healthy child growth and development. Home visitors support parents in cultivating and strengthening a nurturing, positive relationship with their baby at each visit. Parents receive information on topics like child development, infant care and keeping their baby healthy, and learn what is going on in their communities to support new families. Many families are eligible for home visits with a trained home visitor, who coach them as they build their skills as parents and help their baby be safe, healthy and learn.


Children's Relief Nursery
Relief Nursery is a non-profit child abuse and neglect prevention agency proven to strengthen high-risk families and keep young children safe. Relief Nursery stops the cycle of child abuse and neglect with its blend of therapeutic early childhood services and comprehensive family support, including alcohol & drug recovery support services.


Parents As Teachers
Parents as Teachers (PAT) is an early childhood family support and parent education home-visiting model. Families may enroll in Parents as Teachers beginning with pregnancy and may remain in the program until the child enters kindergarten.


Family Support and Connections
Family Support and Connections is a statewide program designed to help families meet the challenges of being a parent in the world today and is available to TANF clients and any other family that is struggling. A local family advocate is assigned to each family to help develop an individual plan to overcome concerns related to finding resources, emergency services, housing assistance, crisis intervention, parenting, domestic violence, drug and alcohol treatment and other supports the family might need.


Early Intervention (EI)
Individually designed services for children birth to three with disabilities and support for parents to enhance children's physical, cognitive, communication, social or emotional and/or adaptive development.

 
mom and baby 

For more information about Home Visiting in Oregon, contact MCHSection.Mailbox@odhsoha.oregon.gov


Home visiting is one strategy in the larger Early Learning system being developed in Oregon.


Early Learning Division

Early Learning Hubs