El-Kamary, S. S., Higman, S. M., Fuddy, L., McFarlane, E., Sia, C., & Duggan, A. K. (2004). Hawaii’s Healthy Start home visiting program: Determinants and impact of rapid repeat birth. Pediatrics, 114(3), e317–e326.
Model(s) Reviewed:
Healthy Families America (HFA)®
| Screening decision | Screening conclusion | HomVEE procedures and standards version |
|---|---|---|
| Passes screens | Eligible for review | Version 1 |
| Rating | Design | Attrition | Baseline equivalence | Compromised randomization | Confounding factors | Valid, reliable measure(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High | Randomized controlled trial | Low | Established on race and SES. baseline equivalence on the outcome is not feasible. Partner violence had a statistically significant baseline difference but is included as a control. | None | None | Not assessed in manuscripts reviewed before 2021 |
| Study participants | Families were recruited to the study between November 1994 and December 1995. Hawaii Healthy Start Program staff screened the medical records of mothers from one of four Oahu communities delivering children at Kapiolani Maternity Hospital for risk factors for child abuse and neglect. Mothers found to be at risk, or those whose records did not contain sufficient information to screen out, were screened further using the Kempe Family Stress Checklist; eligible families were those in which either parent scored 25 or greater (Duggan, 2004a). Of the 897 families who were eligible to participate in the study, 730 (81%) agreed to participate and were randomly assigned to the program group (n = 395), the main comparison group (n = 290), or a testing comparison group (n = 45). 684 families completed a baseline interview (373 families in the program group, 270 families in the main comparison group, and 41 in the testing group comparison). On average, at baseline, mothers were 23.7 years of age (program group) and 23.3 years of age (comparison group). 63% (program group) and 67% (comparison group) of participating families lived below the poverty line. The racial composition of the program group was 34% native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 28% Asian or Filipino, 10% Caucasian, and 27% of unknown primary ethnicity. The main comparison group consisted of 33% native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 28% Asian or Filipino, 14% Caucasian, and 26% of unknown primary ethnicity. This study reports results from the three follow-ups of the Hawaii Healthy Start randomized controlled trial. In each follow-up year, interviews were completed for 88% of families. 81% of participating families completed all three follow-up interviews. |
|---|---|
| Setting | Six Healthy Start Program sites operated by three community-based organizations in Oahu, Hawaii. |
| Intervention services | Home visiting services were designed to provide three to five years of home visiting, with weekly visits for most or all of the child’s first year of life, and visits of gradually decreasing frequency thereafter depending on family need. Home visitors endeavored to establish trusting relationships with families, help them resolve immediate crises, and help them build on existing strengths to improve their ability to function independently. Visitors helped families develop problem-solving skills, connected them to needed services, and aimed to develop an individual service plan with each family every six months and help the family reach six-month goals. The actual frequency of visits, however, was lower than that specified by the model, with families receiving an average of 13 visits in the child’s first year of life, and 51% of families not actively participating in the program by the time the child was 12 months old. Families still active at the end of year 1 received an average of 22 visits in the first year. |
| Comparison conditions | The main comparison group was tested annually to measure outcomes. A second “testing” comparison group was evaluated only at year 3 to ascertain the effect of repeated testing on observed outcomes (Duggan, McFarlane, Fuddy, Burrell, Higman, Windham, et al., 2004). |
| Subgroups examined |
This field lists subgroups examined in the manuscript (even if they were not replicated in other samples and not reported on the summary page for this model’s report). • Parity (primiparous) |
| Funding sources | Maternal and Child Health Bureau (grant R40 MC 00029, formerly grant MCJ-240637, and grant R40 MC 00123, formerly grant MCJ-240838), the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (grant 18303), the Annie E. Casey Foundation (grant 94–4041), the David and Lucile Packard Foundation (grants 93–6051, 94–7957, 97–8058, and 98–3448), and the Hawaii State Department of Health (grant 99-29-J). |
| Author affiliation | None of the study authors are developers of this model. |
| Peer reviewed | Peer reviewed status is not listed for manuscripts reviewed before 2021. |
Findings that rate moderate or high
| Rating | Outcome measure | Effect | Sample | Timing of follow-up | Sample size | Intervention group | Comparison group | Group difference | Effect size | Statistical significance | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High | Did not use birth control after index child’s birth | FavorableUnfavorable or ambiguousNo Effect |
Full sample, Hawaii trial | One year postpartum | 564 mothers | % (adjusted) = 18.00 | Adjusted mean % = 20.00 | OR = 0.85 | HomVEE calculated = -0.08 | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | |
| High | Maternal desire for RRB | FavorableUnfavorable or ambiguousNo Effect |
Full sample, Hawaii trial | One year postpartum | 564 mothers | % (adjusted) = 9.00 | Adjusted mean % = 11.00 | OR = 0.80 | HomVEE calculated = -0.14 | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | |
| High | No family planning site | FavorableUnfavorable or ambiguousNo Effect |
Full sample, Hawaii trial | One year postpartum | 564 mothers | % (adjusted) = 15.00 | Adjusted mean % = 14.00 | OR = 1.06 | HomVEE calculated = 0.05 | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | |
| High | Rapid repeat birth (RRB) | FavorableUnfavorable or ambiguousNo Effect |
Full sample, Hawaii trial | One year postpartum | 564 mothers | % (adjusted) = 21.00 | Adjusted mean % = 20.00 | OR = 1.05 | HomVEE calculated = 0.04 | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | Rapid repeat birth is defined as a birth occurring within 24 months after a previous birth or a repeat birth while still a teen for adolescent mothers (El-Kamary et al., 2004).
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