All versions of At Liberty are available in Adobe Acrobat.
Click here to download Acrobat.
|
Click below to download articles from the latest issue of At Liberty, our quarterly newsletter.
Fall 2007
|
You may also view our newsletter at the Liberty Lutheran Services main site.
Building Caring, Healthy Families
When they were just twelve years old, twin sisters in Philadelphia became pregnant by the same teenage dad. Not only was it the loneliest and scariest of times for these very young girls, national studies clearly show that both they and their babies were at high risk for bleak futures without intervention.
Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP), a program provided through Lutheran Children and Family Service, gives at-risk mothers and babies a healthy dose of encouragement, education and motivation.
"The NFP affiliation with LCFS is right philosophically and programmatically," says Kay Kinsey, PhD, RN, Administrator for NFP Collaboration on assignment to LCFS. "With LCFS's rich array of social services and their positive affiliations with Philadelphia agencies, we knew that together we could help at-risk mothers and babies. By supporting them now, we improve their personal futures and the future of inner city neighborhoods."
Monica, one of the LCFS NFP nurses, visited the twins' home weekly to monitor their physical and emotional health. The twins' mother and their extended family and friends also attended many sessions to build a strong support system before the babies arrived. After their births, Monica offered lots of instruction in positive parenting skills and assessed the babies' development each week. This type of professional nurturing taught the twins how to nurture themselves and their babies. They both became high school graduates, did not turn to drugs or alcohol, did not become pregnant again and are now responsible, working mothers caring for their little girls.
Since 2004, the LCFS Nurse-Family Partnership has served more than 400 Philadelphia single mothers. NFP nurses are experts in public maternal and early childhood health and mentor the women in positive choices and self-determination.
Guiding young mothers to their own success, NFP enlightens the steps they must take to reach long-term personal goals including health, education and setting career goals. Experiencing personal success, sometimes for the first time, the young mothers learn that there is hope for their future. "The Nurse Family Partnership program lays the foundation of success for many women who would struggle through their lives without our support. National research shows that this program is very cost-effective for society and results in significantly improved outcomes for mothers and their children," explains Kinsey.
Archived Newsletters:
