Specifications include, but are not limited to: 1. Home Visits: After a baby is born, a program support specialist connects with a family in the hospital to inform them about Family Connects. The program support specialistracism and encourage them to participate in Family Connects services. If a family is interested, the program support specialist then schedules a visit between the family and a Registered Nurse. Then, a Registered Nurse conducts the first home visit, called the Integrated Home Visit (IHV). In the two-hour IHV, the Registered Nurse assesses a family’s needs using Family Connects’ Family Support Matrix, which consists of 12 factors: 1) maternal health, 2) infant health, 3) health care plans, 4) child care plans, 5) parent-child relationship, 6) management of infant crying, 7) household safety and material supports, 8) family and community safety, 9) history with parenting difficulties, 10) parent well-being, 11) substance abuse in household, and 12) parent emotional support. Based on a family’s identified needs, the Registered Nurse may offer the family 1-2 additional home visits and refer the family to voluntary, community resources (e.g., pediatrician, mental health services, substance use counseling, longer-term home visiting program, childcare). The program support specialist would complete a follow-up phone call after the home visit(s) are conducted to determine the family’s satisfaction with services and connect the family back with the Registered Nurse if the family needs additional referrals. 2. Community Alignment: Integral to program implementation is a community alignment process in which the procured service provider(s) develop and maintain a local community advisory board, compile relevant and comprehensive community resources into an Agency Finder, integrate with local community systems, and work on other activities to ensure partnership across community stakeholders. A community alignment specialist can oversee this workstream. 3. Data Reporting: Essential to the Family Connects model is a comprehensive data collection and performance monitoring system. Family Connects International has its own Salesforce database to capture and monitor fidelity metrics (see D. Performance Measures section below) that assist Registered Nurses in receiving families, tracking caseloads, documenting visits and communication with families, and facilitating referrals and that also evaluate program activities. The Salesforce database also contains the Agency Finder developed during the Community Alignment process and maintained by the service provider. The contractor selected to implement universal nurse home visiting will be required to use the Salesforce database and cannot substitute with another Electronic Health Record system.
