Dakota County Community Services Division

Family Home Visiting

Expectant parents and parents or caregivers of young children can get in-home support with pregnancy topics, parenting skills and connections to community resources.

Description

Family Home Visiting is a voluntary service available to pregnant persons and parents or caregivers of young children. Visits can be in the family's home, or another location preferred by the family.

A trained home visitor makes visits to provide the family support that is tailored to individual families' interests and needs, such as:

• Helping parents and caregivers create a healthy, nurturing environment for their young children
• Connecting families to community services, such as referrals for pregnant women to prenatal care
• Supporting parents and caregivers in being their child's first teacher
• Promoting positive parenting skills

About This Location

Some topics that a home visitor may help families learn more about are:

• Pregnancy health
• Breastfeeding
• Newborn care and baby's health
• How babies grow, develop and learn
• What to do if there are concerns about a child's development and behavior

Features

• Evidence-Based Programs
  • Maternal Early Childhood Sustained Home-Visiting (MECSH)

• Specialization
  • Family

Eligibility

Many Family Home Visiting programs in Minnesota use an evidence-based home visiting model and each model varies slightly in audience, eligibility, and focus. These programs offer services prenatally through at least a child's second birthday, and some programs serve families up to a child's fifth birthday. Contact the program to learn more about their age requirements.

Application Instructions

Contact the local agency to enroll in this program.

Fee

No direct charge for families. Some programs may bill public or private health insurance for services, but families are not billed for co-pay or out-of-pocket costs.