When Nurse-Family Partnership families begin with our program, they are often jobless, sometimes homeless, have to quit school or struggle to make ends meet. For an overwhelming number of families, steady employment, returning to finish or further their education and a job or career are all within their sights or a reality which their personal nurse supports and fosters.
The New York Times recently reported US unemployment rates at a rare low of 3.9%. While it’s encouraging to see how far we’ve come since the recession years of a decade ago, it made me think back to the time when the unemployment rate was 10%, but I was still unable to fill open positions within my organization, because we couldn’t find job seekers with the right skills. This lead me to study the public-school systems and found Colorado high school graduation rates in 2008 were a shocking 44% with only 10% expected to complete a four-year college degree. Although Colorado and other states have made strides in improving these rates over the past decade, we still have a long way to go, particularly for low-income families. Even in 2016, for every 100 children starting kindergarten each year, 32 of them will never wear a cap and gown and cross the stage to receive a high school diploma.
A community without a strong educated workforce causes businesses to struggle to survive. When businesses don’t have the resources to create new jobs to keep up with population growth, the economic engine begins to breakdown. Individuals struggle to provide for themselves and their families. It’s a downward spiral increasing poverty and inequity for entire communities.
Not only do we provide education, support and materials to allow mothers to realize their goals, the intervention Nurse-Family Partnership provides directly impacts how the children our moms are raising play a direct role in shaping the economic future in their communities. Our evidence proves early intervention in a child’s life can determine and navigate their educational successes and outcomes.
With the support of an NFP Nurse
When our nurses support our moms and demonstrate how to raise healthy babies, they are giving hope to these parents for a second chance with their own futures while helping them create a success-based structure for their child at inarguably the most critically influential time in their lives. This is where the perilous cycle begins to break, creating a new, positive ripple effect in their community and households. Not only does our program have an impact on decreasing poverty in areas of risk, it has a positive impact on the socioeconomic growth, improved school readiness, quality of education and building an educated workforce for businesses in the communities we serve. Join us as Nurse-Family Partnership serves communities that will in return create long-term, positive effects throughout for the families within them.
Be a Force for Good,
Frank
Nurse-Family Partnership nurses help new mothers set personal goals to build a foundation for their new family. Meet Mirna a Nurse-Family Partnership mom who is a part-time student taking prerequisite courses for nursing school.
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