Evidence-Based Home Visiting

Home visiting is a free, voluntary family-support service for expecting families and families with young children up to age five. A Family Support Specialist or nurse meets you at home or another place you choose with individualized education, child-development support and connections to resources. [DE-H1, DE-H2]

It supports breastfeeding and safe sleep, child development, maternal health, parenting, stress, and referrals for social needs.

Eligibility is specific to each model. Delaware funds five models: Attachment and Biobehavioral Catch-up, Early Head Start, Healthy Families Delaware, Nurse-Family Partnership and Parents as Teachers. [DE-H1]

Depending on the model: prenatal support, breastfeeding and safe-sleep education, parenting coaching, developmental screening, school-readiness support, and connections to food, housing and transportation as well as education and employment goals. [DE-H1, DE-H2]

Nurse-Family Partnership runs from pregnancy to the child's second birthday. Healthy Families Delaware continues through early childhood, and Parents as Teachers runs through preschool and early readiness. Confirm your local model's end point.

Delaware Thrives says home visiting is free and voluntary. [DE-H1]

Dial 211 for Help Me Grow, text your ZIP code to 898211, or submit an online referral. A specialist explains the models and starts enrollment. [DE-H1, DE-H6]

Your pregnancy stage or child's age, where you live, whether this is your first pregnancy, and model criteria. Nurse-Family Partnership serves first-time low-income mothers and requires prenatal enrollment before a late-pregnancy cutoff, commonly before 29 weeks. [DE-H4]

Not every family fits every model. Nurse-Family Partnership has specific eligibility, and others depend on child age, risk, service area and capacity. Medicaid may cover some pathways, but model criteria still apply.

Home visiting works alongside Medicaid, WIC, doula support, Healthy Women Healthy Babies, pediatric and OB care, and behavioral care.

211 and 898211 are the mother-facing front door; local model and provider county, timing, language and capacity vary.

Referral materials are multilingual, though local staffing differs by program.

Ask Help Me Grow about another model. Not meeting Nurse-Family Partnership criteria does not disqualify you from Healthy Families Delaware, Parents as Teachers or Early Head Start.