Spotlight on: Nurse Family Partnership

Being a new mom comes with a lot of changes, and a lot of questions.

How will I provide? Will I be a good mom? Do I have the skills necessary to give my child everything they need?

The Nurse Family Partnership program at Metropolitan Southwest helps expectant mothers to address each of these questions, and any more questions they have, through their child’s second birthday as they prepare to enter preschool.

“We want to help fill a knowledge gap that will exist because of lack of experience,” says Program Supervisor Lisa Shadd.

Staffed with nurses, including home visitors and a family support worker, the program meets each mom where she is. “She will have a direct line to her personal nurse, who will help through questions, problems, confusion and goals,” Lisa shares.

This includes support for a healthy pregnancy and parenting education, as well as connections to additional resources around education, housing, employment, mental health and beyond, so that moms can envision a life of stability and opportunities for success for both herself and her child.

“You have this human growing inside of you that will eventually be a part of your life forever,” Lisa says. “Our hope is that we give you the skills necessary to continue on a positive path.”

Nurse Home Visitor Kelly Tavormina shares: 

“After working in Labor and Delivery for 10 plus years, I stumbled upon the Nurse Family Partnership Nurse Home Visitor job at Metropolitan Family Services. I researched the program and knew this was something we needed in our area. I’ve had so many pregnant patients come in to the hospital without the knowledge of all the resources available to her to help guide her journey as a new mother. I’ve also had a lot of patients with health conditions during their pregnancies that didn’t understand the seriousness of their conditions and how it could effect their pregnancy or their baby.

This program is amazing! We work together with pregnant moms to promote healthy pregnancies and then transition to making sure baby is meeting milestones while still focusing on mom as well. I’m so glad I took the leap and applied for this job, I absolutely love it! “