ABSTRACTOver 300 parents from two infant/primary schools responded to a survey concerning parent-child conflict associated with homework. Results show that 1 in 4 parents report that there is a substantial amount of tension concomitant with homework and that for many the problem is not transient but has been present for a long time. The implications of these findings on the benefit of homework as a learning activity, and also on the effect such conflict may have on the parent-child relationship, are discussed.
To investigate the impact of a long-term nurse home visiting programme, embedded within a universal child health system, on the health, development and well-being of the child, mother and family.
Design
Randomised controlled trial.
Setting/participants
208 (111 intervention, 97 comparison) eligible at-risk mothers living in a socioeconomically disadvantaged area in Sydney, booking into the local public hospital for confinement.
Intervention
A sustained and structured nurse home visiting antenatal and postnatal parenting education and support programme.
Control
Usual universal care.
Main outcome measures
The quality of the home environment for child development (12–24 months), parent–child interaction and child mental, psychomotor and behavioural development at 18 months.
Results
Mothers receiving the intervention were more emotionally and verbally responsive (HOME observation) during the first 2 years of their child9s life than comparison group mothers (mean difference 0.5; 95% CI 0.1 to 0.9). Duration of breastfeeding was longer for intervention mothers than comparison mothers (mean difference 7.9 weeks; 95% CI 2.9 to 12.9). There was no significant difference in parent–child interaction between the intervention and comparison groups. There were no significant overall group differences in child mental, psychomotor or behavioural development. Mothers assessed antenatally as having psychosocial distress benefitted from the intervention across a number of areas.
Conclusion
This sustained nurse home visiting programme showed trends to enhanced outcomes in many, but not all, areas. Specifically, it resulted in clinically enhanced outcomes in breastfeeding duration and, for some subgroups of mothers, women9s experience of motherhood and children9s mental development.
Partner affectional support and understanding are key elements in prevention of postnatal distress in new mothers. The traditional way of encouraging such empathic support and communication may not lead to an increase in the suggested behaviours. This study investigated the impact of an innovative way to promote such behaviours: use of a quiz or mothers and fathers which requires each partner to guess how the other is experiencing parenthood, and to facilitate communication between them on this topic. In a pilot study 51 parents of young infants were randomly assigned either to receive the quiz or be exposed to the pamphlets commonly available. Home or telephone interviews were conducted later. Nearly all the quiz participants felt very positively about this resource, reporting that their partner had found out something new about them by doing the quiz. The Great Parent's Quiz is a helpful resource for parents of infants and toddlers which increases couple communication and empathy. It can be made available to all parents through routinely accessed community services and does not require the input of a health professional. Further work is needed to explore which parents benefit the most from it.
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