Understanding and Expanding the Reach of Home Visiting (HV-REACH) Project

Conditions

• Centralized Intake Systems
• Home Visiting

Eligibility Criteria

Sex

ALL

Age

18 Years - N/A

Healthy Volunteers

Not accepted

Interventions

• No intervention — OTHER
  No intervention.

Study Details

Mathematica, funded by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will collect descriptive information for the Understanding and Expanding the Reach of Home Visiting (HV-REACH) project. The study team will conduct qualitative case studies in up to seven purposively selected centralized intake systems that refer families to Early Childhood Home Visiting programs. Centralized intake systems are a single entry point that use outreach and screening to identify families with needs and provide referrals to the home visiting program that best fits those needs. Existing centralized intake systems use a range of methods, and their definitions and applications can vary widely. The goal of the case studies is to provide an in-depth understanding of the features of centralized intake systems, how they reach potentially eligible families, and how they support and expand the enrollment of families in early childhood home visiting (ECHV) programs. Understanding and explaining how staff think different features of these systems influence family and staff experiences of outreach, screening, referral, and enrollment processes can potentially lead to opportunities for program improvement efforts, technical assistance, or changes to centralized intake system processes. For instance, ACF and their partner, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), can use information about different centralized intake systems to develop policy and program guidance. In addition, the public-including current centralized intake systems, staff from localities considering implementing them, and technical assistance providers who work with centralized intake systems-can use information from the case studies about (1) successfully implementing or enhancing existing centralized intake systems, or (2) utilizing new outreach or referral pathways to expand enrollment to families not consistently reached. For example, staff from localities considering implementing centralized intake systems can understand different staffing and governance structures that might work in their contexts. Researchers can also use the information to plan future studies of centralized intake systems that examine the outcomes of these systems. Data collection will begin in fall 2024. The study team will conduct virtual or in-person site visits, with semi-structured interviews and document collection, to understand different features of these systems and family and staff experiences with outreach, screening, referrals, and enrollment processes.

Key Dates

Start date

Jan 1, 2025

Status verified

Oct 2024

Primary completion

Aug 29, 2025

Completion

Sep 29, 2026

Study Design

Enrollment

154 participants (estimated)

Arms

• Arm: Single-group study
  The study has one group/cohort, which will include up to 154 people. The study team will conduct one round of semi-structured interviews with up to 42 administrators or other staff at the centralized intake system organization(s), 28 home visiting program directors and other staff responsible for overseeing outreach and enrollment, 42 home visitors and other staff responsible for conducting outreach and enrollment, and 42 families who were referred to home visiting through the selected centralized intake systems. All respondents will also complete a form to provide information about their demographic characteristics.

Primary Outcome Measure

Centralized Intake Administrator Screening Talking Points or Screening Email with Questions [ Time Frame: 2 months ]

Central Contacts

• Jess Harding, PhD
  (609) 945-6641
  [email protected]

Locations (1)

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