Ashley Roberts, RN, FCPH Director of Nursing
Marissa Ratliff, BSN, RN, Nurse Home Visitor
WASHINGTON COURT HOUSE — Fayette County Public Health has been selected as one of the initial communities in 11 counties to be served by a new universal nurse home visiting program, Family Connects.
This evidence-based program will begin this summer with the goal of serving 4,000 families. The program was announced in April by Ohio Governor Mike DeWine.
Family Connects will offer all new families in the community a nurse home visit around three weeks after the family brings their baby home.
“Fayette County Public Health is excited to be a part of this first wave of funding for the new nurse home visiting program, Family Connects,” said Ashley Roberts, RN, director of nursing at Fayette County Public Health.
“Through this program, we hope to connect with new mothers and babies to provide community resources during their time of need. We look forward to building stronger and healthier families,” she said.
“Family Connects will allow Ohio to offer support to every new mom and family right after they come home with their new baby, to answer questions or address concerns they may have, as well as connect them to any clinical or community support they need,” said Governor DeWine.
He shared that “similar programs have a proven track record of reducing infant mortality. In places where these programs have been implemented, rates of child protective services investigations have decreased by 44 percent, and mothers showed a 30 percent drop in postpartum depression and a 50 percent reduction in emergency room visits.”
The visits will begin in the summer of 2024 with the goal of serving approximately 4,000 new families within a year of beginning the program. Fayette County Public Health is part of a collaborative with Greene County Public Health, Darke County General Health District, and Sidney-Shelby County Health Department. This collaborative will offer visits to families in Fayette, Greene, Darke, and Shelby counties.
This program will complement existing programs at FCPH that serve expectant and new parents, including the Help Me Grow Home Visiting program and the Preconception Health and Wellness Nurse Home Visiting program. Marissa Ratliff, RN, BSN, will serve as the Family Connects newborn nurse home visitor.
During their hospital stay, families will be offered the opportunity to schedule a visit. For more information on the program, visit familyconnects.org
