California Home Visiting Program (CHVP)
The birth of a baby is an exciting time. It can also be overwhelming, especially for those without a positive parenting model or support network to guide them. The California Home Visiting Program (CHVP) is designed for overburdened families who are at risk for Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), including child maltreatment, domestic violence, substance use disorder and mental health related challenges. Home visiting gives parents the tools and know-how to independently raise their children. It’s a preventive intervention focused on promoting positive parenting and child development. Decades of research on home visiting shows that home visits by a trained professional during pregnancy and in the first few years of life improves the lives of children and families. Giving children a solid start in their first few years of life increases the opportunity for a brighter, more prosperous future.
CHVP Policy and Procedures updated for FY 2024–25. For details, see CDPH-CHVP Memo 24-06.
Program Profile
Our Goal: To promote maternal health and well-being, improve infant and child health and development, strengthen family functioning and cultivate strong communities.
We Serve: Pregnant and newly parenting families who have one or more of the following risk factors: Domestic violence, inadequate income, unstable housing, education less than 12 years, substance use disorder, and depression and/or mental health related challenges.
Service Delivery: Services are voluntary and provided by a Public Health Nurse or paraprofessional to pregnant and newly parenting families in the family’s home or alternate agreed-upon location. Services are typically offered for two-to-three years. The frequency of visits is based on the needs of the family.
Outcomes: Research has shown that evidence-based home visiting programs produce positive outcomes that save taxpayer dollars by reducing societal costs associated with intimate partner violence, child maltreatment, youth crime, substance use disorder and need for government assistance.
Funding: CHVP administers the federal Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) Program grant, as well as the State General Funds allocated to local health jurisdictions to deliver evidence-based home visiting services and implement innovative home visiting projects.
Home visiting services are typically offered in the family’s home where teachable moments naturally arise. Working one-on-one with a home visiting professional, families can ask questions, discuss concerns and gain valuable information. Home visitors build relationships as they provide services tailored to each family’s needs, such as:
- Teaching parenting skills and modeling parenting techniques.
- Providing information and guidance on a range of topics, such as safe sleep position, injury prevention and nutrition.
- Providing referrals to address substance use disorder, family violence and maternal depression.
- Screening children for developmental delays and facilitating intervention.
- Promoting early learning in the home that emphasizes positive parenting and building a language-rich environment.
CHVP local health jurisdictions serve clients using the Family Connects, Healthy Families America, Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY), Nurse-Family Partnership or Parents as Teachers home visiting models based on the specific needs of the communities served. All five models are strengths-based and focus on a participant’s individual interests and goals. For example, these models give parents the tools and know how to independently raise their children; increase parent knowledge of early childhood development and improve parenting practices; provide early detection of developmental delays and health issues; prevent child abuse and neglect; and increase children’s school readiness and success. Below are additional characteristics of each model:
Family Connects
- Supports health for all families with newborns at a moment of life-changing transition. Trained Family Connects nurses offer home visits to assess the needs of newborns and postpartum parents, provide health information and refer to community and medical services when needed.
- Utilizes insights from home visits to align systems of care for families in support of health equity.
Healthy Families America
- Serves low-income families who must be enrolled within the first three months after an infant‘s birth.
- A trained paraprofessional provides home visits to parents and their children through three years postpartum.
Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY)
- Offers parents support, training and material to engage in effective, developmental and fun activities with their children in the comfort of their own homes.
- Program is a developmentally appropriate, early literacy curriculum designed to promote children’s cognitive, social, emotional and physical development. Parents engage with the curriculum by roleplaying the parent-child activities with a home visitor who is from the same community.
Nurse-Family Partnership
- Serves low-income, first-time moms who must be enrolled by the 28th week of pregnancy
- A Public Health Nurse provides one-on-one home visits to parents and their babies through two years postpartum.
Parents as Teachers
- Serves families with children (between pregnancy and Kindergarten entry) experiencing one or more stressors in their lives.
- A Parent Educator conducts personal visits with parents and their children, as well as monthly group events.
The California Home Visiting Program (CHVP) administered two evidence-based home visiting models, Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) and Healthy Families America (HFA), across 21 Local Health Jurisdictions (LHJs) with funding from the federal Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) program.
The California Home Visiting Program (CHVP) oversees local evidence-based and innovative home visiting programs in 59 California local health jurisdictions. Five evidence-based home visiting models are supported: Family Connects, Healthy Families America, Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY), Nurse-Family Partnership and Parents as Teachers. CHVP also supports innovative home visiting projects, including evidence-based and evidence-informed home visiting programs, with a focus on addressing local needs, fostering ongoing learning and sharing best practices. CHVP is supported by funding from the federal Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) program and the California State General Fund.