RESUMO
INTRODUCTION: In the Greater Eastern region of France, a primary prevention intervention in perinatal care has shown promising results on child development. In order to make this intervention transferable and sustainable outside a research context, it was adapted into a universal family health program. The PERL (Petite Enfance Recherche-action en Lorraine: early childhood research-action in Lorraine) research-action aimed to evaluate the effects of this new intervention. METHOD: The objective of the article was to present the intervention logic of the PERL program, based on the evaluation of processes and mechanisms (2018-2019). The method was based on 18 semi-structured interviews with actors involved in the construction and implementation of PERL, and a consultation process. RESULTS: Supported by the Maternal and Child Protection services (PMI), PERL is a program based on home visits by nurses, analysis of practices and supervision. In contrast to a standardized or an injunctive perspective, the approach recognizes and supports the parent as an expert of his or her own child. The importance of supervision in facilitating the adoption of an unconditional benevolent posture and the professional development of nurses confronted with complex situations is one of the cornerstones of the system. CONCLUSIONS: PERL is a structured and non-standardized parenting support program, based on strong health promotion concepts. This evaluation underlines the importance and challenges of having a shared vision of the intervention logic. In the perspective of the deployment and transfer of PERL, it will be necessary to adapt the system to the contexts and territories. In this perspective, an implementation guide has been produced.
Assuntos
Poder Familiar , Pais , Recém-Nascido , Masculino , Feminino , Gravidez , Criança , Pré-Escolar , Humanos , Assistência Perinatal , Promoção da Saúde , FrançaRESUMO
Background: Early childhood is a key period for reducing the social inequalities that affect health. Some parenting support and home visitation programs have proven to be effective in assisting parents during this period. France's Protection Maternelle et Infantile (maternal and child welfare) services (PMIs) are at the heart of this primary prevention and may adapt their intervention to improve parenting support. In this manuscript, we describe the protocol of the PERL study, an intervention based on a home visiting program. Method and design: The PERL study is a single-center, randomized, controlled interventional trial. The aim was to assess the impact of a preventive home visiting program on the development of young children and parent-baby interaction. Visits were made by PMI nurses to 64 randomly recruited families from the general population. All families who had a baby born after 37 weeks of pregnancy between September 2018 and December 2019, and who resided in the trial area were eligible. Participants were randomly allocated to the intervention group or the control group. The PMI nurses made 12 home visits in the first year, 6 in the second year, and 4 in the third and fourth years of the child's life. Primary and secondary outcomes were measured when the child was 4 and 24 months old. These measurements recorded (i) the child's developmental milestones, in particular, language and socio emotional skills, (ii) early interaction, maternal sensitivity, and attachment patterns, (iii) maternal psychopathology including depression. Discussion: This study aims to assess the impact of home visits, made by specifically-trained and supervised nurses, on the child's development and parent-child interactions. Such interventions are complementary to other preventive programs addressing the impact of social inequalities on perinatal health. Placing nurses' professional skills at the center of this project may prove an effective and cost-saving intervention compared to existing programs. The study proposes a prevention model that is in keeping with the principle of reducing social inequalities in health by providing support from the earliest age through public service. Clinical Trial Registration: The clinical trial number is NCT03506971, registered on April 24, 2018.
