Public health nurse reflections on implementing the New Families home visiting programme: A qualitative study

Abstract

Aim: To investigate reflections of public health nurses (PHNs) on implementing the New Families programme, a supplement to the usual Norwegian child health centre programme. It involves user-led decisions on the content and number of home visits offered by the family's PHN from pregnancy week 28 until the child is 2 years. Design: An interpretive description approach. Methods: Altogether 206 anonymized, undated reflection notes by PHNs becoming familiar with the programme were collected in 2017–2020. NVivo 12 and inductive content analysis were used to convert the data into manageable segments. Results: Focusing on childhood experiences and parental role expectations among prospective parents during home visits was seen as a major shift in the nurses' counselling strategy. Providing relevant information to the parents-to-be ahead of a meeting was important. Given sufficient staff and guidance, the programme was considered a good basis for building a relationship with the family.