Pérez C

A cost-effectiveness evaluation of a home visit program for adolescent mothers

A home visit intervention program for adolescents throughout their pregnancy and during the early stages of motherhood was evaluated. The participants (N = 90) were part of a larger group of adolescents treated in two health centers in a poor neighborhood in Santiago, Chile. The program was carried out by volunteer community health monitors and evaluated through an experimental, randomized, controlled clinical trial. Cost-effectiveness was examined in comparison with standard health care. Results show higher scores for the intervention group on the mothers’ mental health and nutritional state, as well as on the children’s levels of linguistic development.

Evaluación de la efectividad de programas de visitas domiciliarias para madres adolescentes y sus hijos/as

BACKGROUND Home visiting is effective for the promotion and prevention of mother-child health in other countries, especially in vulnerable populations such as pregnant teenagers. AIM To evaluate the association between receiving a home visiting program during pregnancy and child development during the first year of life, maternal mental health, perception of social support and school attendance. MATERIAL AND METHODS Cross sectional assessment of 132 teenage mother-sibling pairs. Of these, 87 received home visits and 45 were randomly assigned to a control group. The assessed variables were maternal mental health, perception of social support, life satisfaction, incorporation of mothers to school after delivery, child development and frequency of child abuse and neglect. RESULTS Mothers that received home visits had a better mental health and went back to school in a higher proportion. No significant differences between groups were observed on perception of social support or child development. CONCLUSIONS These results suggest the effectiveness of domiciliary visits performed by non-professionals, to improve mental health and social integration of teenage mothers.

Importancia de los Cambios Iniciales en la Psicoterapia con Adolescentes

Resumen es: Esta investigacion tiene por objetivo estudiar los Indicadores de Cambio Genericos (ICG) en psicoterapias con adolescentes, realizadas en contexto natura...