Black or African American
42%
Source
Mitchell-Herzfeld, S., Izzo, C., Greene, R., Lee, E., & Lowenfels, A. (2005). Evaluation of Healthy Families New York (HFNY): First year program impacts. Albany, NY: University at Albany, Center for Human Services Research.
Model(s) Reviewed
Funding Sources
New York State Office of Children and Families Services, Bureau of Evaluation and Research
Study Design
| Design | Attrition | Baseline equivalence | Confounding factors | Valid, reliable measures? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Randomized controlled trial | High | Established on race/ethnicity, SES, and feasible outcomes. Statistical controls for feasible baseline outcomes included. | None |
Notes
In 2020, HomVEE updated this review to move "Mother has health insurance" from the Maternal Health domain to the Family Economic Self-Sufficiency domain because ACF determined that health insurance coverage belongs in that domain.
In 2020, HomVEE updated this review to move "Child has health insurance" from the Child Health domain to the Family Economic Self-Sufficiency domain because ACF determined that health insurance coverage belongs in that domain.
Attrition rating is based on overall sample sizes because sample sizes for treatment and control groups were unavailable.
Study Participants
Recruitment for the randomized controlled trial of Healthy Families New York (HFNY) occurred between March 2000 and August 2001. Pregnant women or parents with an infant 3 months of age or less who were found to be at risk for child abuse or neglect and lived in communities with high rates of teen pregnancy, infant mortality, and welfare receipt, and low rates of prenatal care were referred to HFNY. Consenting families were screened using the Kempe Family Stress Checklist (FSC); 1,297 eligible families who received scores of 25 or higher on the FSC were randomly assigned to the program group (n = 647) or the comparison group (n = 650). 1,157 mothers completed a baseline interview (589 in the program group and 568 in the comparison group). Of those who completed baseline interviews, 41.9% were African American, 17.0% were Latina, 33.7% were White, and the remaining 7.3% were of another race or ethnicity. On average, the mothers were 22.4 years of age, 52.3% had not completed high school or a GED , and 32.4% of the families were receiving welfare. This study reports on the first-year program impacts of HFNY, using a sample of 1,060 families who completed the first follow-up interview.
Setting
Three Healthy Families New York sites were included in the study: Erie, Rensselaer, and Ulster counties. Erie serves primarily African American and Latino families in inner-city neighborhoods in Buffalo. Rensselaer and Ulster counties include urban, suburban, and rural locations; both serve largely White families, but with a substantial African American population in Rensselaer and Latino population in Ulster.
Home Visiting Services
Participants in the program group were assigned to an HFNY home visitor. Home visitors were scheduled to visit families biweekly during pregnancy (if they enrolled prior to the birth of the child) and at least weekly immediately following the birth of the child. The frequency of visits was gradually decreased based on family needs, and visits continued until the child turned 5 or began Head Start or kindergarten. Home visitors emphasized activities to improve the parent-child relationship, help parents understand child development and improve child growth, improve access to health care, and improve family functioning through the development and use of a Family Support Plan.
Comparison Conditions
Members of the control group received information about and referrals to other community services, though they were not referred to home visiting services that were similar to HFNY (DuMont et al., 2008).
Subgroups examined
• Parity (primiparous) • Maternal age (less than 18 years or 18 and older) • Maternal depression (low, moderate, or high based on screening) • Intimate partner violence (reported violence in year prior to enrollment or did not report violence) • Mother reports being victim of maltreatment during own childhood (yes or no)
Study Participants
Recruitment for the randomized controlled trial of Healthy Families New York (HFNY) occurred between March 2000 and August 2001. Pregnant women or parents with an infant 3 months of age or less who were found to be at risk for child abuse or neglect and lived in communities with high rates of teen pregnancy, infant mortality, and welfare receipt, and low rates of prenatal care were referred to HFNY. Consenting families were screened using the Kempe Family Stress Checklist (FSC); 1,297 eligible families who received scores of 25 or higher on the FSC were randomly assigned to the program group (n = 647) or the comparison group (n = 650). 1,157 mothers completed a baseline interview (589 in the program group and 568 in the comparison group). Of those who completed baseline interviews, 41.9% were African American, 17.0% were Latina, 33.7% were White, and the remaining 7.3% were of another race or ethnicity. On average, the mothers were 22.4 years of age, 52.3% had not completed high school or a GED , and 32.4% of the families were receiving welfare. This study reports on the first-year program impacts of HFNY, using a sample of 1,060 families who completed the first follow-up interview.
Setting
Three Healthy Families New York sites were included in the study: Erie, Rensselaer, and Ulster counties. Erie serves primarily African American and Latino families in inner-city neighborhoods in Buffalo. Rensselaer and Ulster counties include urban, suburban, and rural locations; both serve largely White families, but with a substantial African American population in Rensselaer and Latino population in Ulster.
Home Visiting Services
Participants in the program group were assigned to an HFNY home visitor. Home visitors were scheduled to visit families biweekly during pregnancy (if they enrolled prior to the birth of the child) and at least weekly immediately following the birth of the child. The frequency of visits was gradually decreased based on family needs, and visits continued until the child turned 5 or began Head Start or kindergarten. Home visitors emphasized activities to improve the parent-child relationship, help parents understand child development and improve child growth, improve access to health care, and improve family functioning through the development and use of a Family Support Plan.
Comparison Conditions
Members of the control group received information about and referrals to other community services, though they were not referred to home visiting services that were similar to HFNY (DuMont et al., 2008).
Subgroups examined
• Parity (primiparous) • Maternal age (less than 18 years or 18 and older) • Maternal depression (low, moderate, or high based on screening) • Intimate partner violence (reported violence in year prior to enrollment or did not report violence) • Mother reports being victim of maltreatment during own childhood (yes or no)
Findings that rate moderate or high in this manuscript
| Outcome measure | Timing of follow-up | Rating | Direction of Effect | Effect size (absolute value) | Stastical significance | Sample size | Sample description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ER visits due to injury or ingestion | Year 1 | Moderate | 0.31 | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1061 children | Full sample, NY Trial |
| Outcome measure | Timing of follow-up | Rating | Direction of Effect | Effect size (absolute value) | Stastical significance | Sample size | Sample description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attitudes: Physical punishment (AAPI-2) | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1060 mothers | Full sample, NY trial | |||
| Attitudes: Inappropriate expectations (AAPI-2) | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1060 mothers | Full sample, NY trial | |||
| Attitudes: Empathy (AAPI-2) | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1060 mothers | Full sample, NY trial | |||
| Attitudes: Role reversal (AAPI-2) | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1060 mothers | Full sample, NY trial | |||
| Attitudes: Power/independence (AAPI-2) | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1060 mothers | Full sample, NY trial | |||
| Child safety checklist | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1060 mothers | Full sample, NY trial |
| Outcome measure | Timing of follow-up | Rating | Direction of Effect | Effect size (absolute value) | Stastical significance | Sample size | Sample description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Family received WIC | Year 1 | Moderate | 0.08 | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1061 families | Full sample, NY trial | ||
| Mother employed | Year 1 | Moderate | 0.17 | Statistically significant, p < 0.05 |
1061 families | Full sample, NY trial | ||
| Family received TANF | Year 1 | Moderate | 0.13 | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1061 families | Full sample, NY trial | ||
| Mother has health insurance | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1061 mothers | Full sample, NY Trial | |||
| Child has health insurance | Year 1 | Moderate | 0.30 | Statistically significant, p < 0.05 |
1061 children | Full sample, NY Trial | ||
| Family received 50% income from work | Year 1 | Moderate | 0.13 | Not statistically significant, p > 0.05 |
1061 families | Full sample, NY trial | ||
| Education appropriate for age | Year 1 | Moderate | 0.07 | Not statistically significant, p > 0.05 |
1061 families | Full sample, NY trial |
| Outcome measure | Timing of follow-up | Rating | Direction of Effect | Effect size (absolute value) | Stastical significance | Sample size | Sample description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mother has primary care physician | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1061 mothers | Full sample, NY Trial | |||
| Depressive symptoms (CES-D) | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1061 mothers | Full sample, NY Trial | |||
| Above depression threshold (CES-D) | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1061 mothers | Full sample, NY Trial | |||
| Sense of personal mastery (PSM) | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1061 mothers | Full sample, NY Trial | |||
| Smoking | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1061 mothers | Full sample, NY Trial | |||
| Smoking frequency | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1061 mothers | Full sample, NY Trial | |||
| Alcohol abuse (AUDIT) | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1061 mothers | Full sample, NY Trial | |||
| Above alcohol abuse cutoff (AUDIT) | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1061 mothers | Full sample, NY Trial | |||
| Drug use | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1061 mothers | Full sample, NY Trial |
| Outcome measure | Timing of follow-up | Rating | Direction of Effect | Effect size (absolute value) | Stastical significance | Sample size | Sample description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Child has primary care provider | Year 1 | Moderate | 0.08 | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1061 children | Full sample, NY Trial | ||
| Child ever without needed medical care | Year 1 | Moderate | 0.28 | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1061 children | Full sample, NY Trial | ||
| Number of well-baby visits | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1061 children | Full sample, NY Trial | |||
| Mother breastfed baby | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1060 mothers | Full sample, NY Trial | |||
| Number of months breastfed | Year 1 | Moderate | Not statistically significant, p ≥ 0.05 | 1060 mothers | Full sample, NY Trial |
This study included participants with the following characteristics at enrollment:
Race/Ethnicity
Maternal Education
Other Characteristics
This study included participants from the following locations:
- New York