Evaluation of a healthy families America (HFA) Program: A deeper understanding

Objectives: To assess the effectiveness of a Healthy Families America (HFA) programme in meeting its goals and better understand the role of therapeutic alliance. Methods: One hundred and sixty-three families and their Family Support Worker (FSW) enrolled in an HFA programme completed five sets of measures over a five-year time frame. Results: Descriptive statistics provide a socio-demographic and programme involvement profile. Families demonstrated positive health and child development-related outcomes. Families improved in their ability to provide a positive home environment; children successfully met developmental milestones; and FSWs were highly effective in engaging families and creating a working alliance. Conclusions: Programme strengths and weaknesses are discussed within an international context with implications for future research in this area.