CONNECT & Evidence-Based Home Visiting

CONNECT is coordinated intake and referral for maternal and infant services and home visiting. It can match you to Healthy Start or to Nurse-Family Partnership, Healthy Families Florida or Parents as Teachers. [FL-HV1, FL-HV2]

Evidence-based home visiting provides repeated support on parenting, child development, safety, health, stress and social services over months or years.

Eligibility is model- and location-specific. Nurse-Family Partnership serves first-time mothers, generally with prenatal enrollment no later than about the 28th week, in participating low-income communities. Healthy Families Florida serves target areas for families expecting or with a baby under 3 months who have identified stressors. Parents as Teachers varies locally. [FL-HV1, FL-HV3, FL-HV4]

Nurse-Family Partnership provides nurse home visits, Healthy Families Florida provides voluntary family support, and Parents as Teachers provides parent education and developmental support. [FL-HV1, FL-HV2]

Nurse-Family Partnership runs to the child's second birthday. Healthy Families Florida begins prenatally or soon after birth and may continue for years. Parents as Teachers varies.

Publicly supported models are free to eligible families. [FL-HV2]

Contact CONNECT or your local Healthy Start coalition and describe your pregnancy stage or infant's age, whether this is your first baby, and the support you want. Coordinated intake identifies which models serve your area and whether you are eligible. [FL-HV1]

Model-specific information: pregnancy stage, baby's age, first-time-parent status, needs and stressors, and where you live.

Not every model operates everywhere. The MIECHV network funds three models through 16 organizations in 35 high-need communities, and Healthy Families Florida works in local target areas even though the lead network is statewide. Capacity matters. [FL-HV2, FL-HV3]

Home visiting can be used with Medicaid, Healthy Start, From the Start, WIC, pediatric care and behavioral health.

Start with CONNECT or your local Healthy Start coalition, and use model-specific locators if you already know the model you want.

Language capacity is local. Ask CONNECT about preferred language, interpreter availability and cultural familiarity.

Ask CONNECT about Healthy Start, Early Head Start, HIPPY and local family supports. Being turned down by one model does not mean there is no support.