Hello Family releases first annual report

Published: April 5, 2023, 1:22 p.m.

It's been a little more than a year since\xa0\u2014a unique collection of support systems for young children and their families\u2014began operations in Spartanburg, and the capacity-building approach the initiative has brought to early childhood services in our community is already changing lives according to their\xa0.\xa0The program is a first-of-its-kind approach aimed at significantly improving child wellbeing, boosting future prosperity, and providing quantifiable financial benefits to the Spartanburg community well in excess of its cost and provides free universal nurse home visiting, free evidence-based parent education and support tools, and significantly enhanced early learning opportunities\xa0at a full citywide scale Among the group's first year outcomes, more than 85 percent of mothers served by BirthMatters, a free doula service for young, expectant mothers in the City supported by Hello Family, delivered their babies without a NICU admission, and more than 80 percent had a healthy birth weight and were breastfed at birth. Meanwhile, Family Connects, another program supported by Hello Family, completed 236 nurse home visits to assess needs and offer supportive guidance on infant health-related topics. Supported by\xa0, Hello Family is a broad community partnership with additional support coming from\xa0Mary Black Foundation, the Duke Endowment,\xa0BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina Foundation, and\xa0Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System.\xa0 Today on the podcast, we discuss Hello Family's first year and future goals with Hello Family Director, Kaitlin Watts.