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Client experiences in a prenatal home visiting program: A prenatal care coordination program evaluation
Author(s) -
Heitzman Melissa,
Weitzel Jennifer,
Kroll Stephanie,
Zabler Bev
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
public health nursing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.471
H-Index - 55
eISSN - 1525-1446
pISSN - 0737-1209
DOI - 10.1111/phn.12631
Subject(s) - program evaluation , prenatal care , nursing , fidelity , health department , public health , medicine , family medicine , psychology , environmental health , population , computer science , telecommunications , public administration , political science
Objective(s) Prenatal home visiting programs are a strategy to promote positive birth outcomes. Ongoing evaluations of these programs are important to promote fidelity and quality. The goal of this program evaluation was to gain clients’ perspectives of their experiences in one Wisconsin Health Department's Prenatal Care Coordination program including: (a) why clients entered the program, (b) whether client expectations were met, and (c) how expectations impacted client retention. Design A Health Department in Wisconsin undertook a three‐part program evaluation of their Prenatal Care Coordination program in 2014–2015. Highlighted here is the final phase of this evaluation. The evaluation was guided by the CDC's (1999) Framework for Program Evaluation in Public Health . Sample Clients meeting eligibility criteria were divided into representative clusters using k‐means clustering model. Twenty semi‐structured interviews with former clients of the Wisconsin Health Department's Prenatal Care Coordination program were conducted. Results Most clients had no expectations coming into the program and were satisfied with the services they received. Participants named the nurse–client relationship and support from this relationship as a key benefit of the program, while a secondary benefit was the information and resources received. The Health Department used these findings for program improvement and strategic planning.