New Parent Support Program

The New Parent Support Program is a team made up of nurses, social workers and home visitation specialists who offer support and guidance by helping parents:

• Build strong, healthy bonds with their infants and toddlers that will lay the foundation for their social and emotional development
• Manage the demands of parenting, especially when impacted by deployments and other military operations
• Remain flexible and responsive when navigating daily life
• Build a strong support network
• Respond to infant and toddler behavior sensitively and be attuned to their developmental needs
• Find services in the local community in time of need

Learn more about the New Parent Support Program and contact your installation New Parent Support Program office to find out what’s available at your installation.

New Parent Support Program staff are child development professionals, including registered nurses, clinical social workers, and para-professionals trained in the delivery and practice of established home visiting models. The program is supervised and monitored at the installation level by the Family Advocacy program manager.

The program is available to military families who are expecting a baby or have children age 3 or younger. Marine Corps eligibility includes families with at least one child under 5.

Contact your installation New Parent Support Program office or Family Advocacy Program office.

NPS services are available to expectant parents, both single and married, and parents of children from birth to three years of age. Participation is strictly on a voluntary basis. A home visitation schedule is set up with a provider to evaluate and meet parent/child needs. Home visitors have backgrounds in maternal/child health, child development, public health, nursing or social work.

The New Parent Support Program's goals for participant families are to promote healthy family functioning and positive parent-child interaction, increase parents' awareness of positive parenting, promote healthy childhood growth and development, increase parents' coping skills regarding the addition of a new child to the family, improve prenatal care through referral to services and health related education and to increase parents' awareness of and access to military community resources available for families. Home visits and one-on-one sessions are geared towards meeting these goals by providing some extra support while raising a family away from traditional resources.

We accomplish this through informative classes, support groups, playgroups, individualized home visits, walk-in office hours, supportive telephone calls, and a large book and video lending library. We currently offer an Infant and Toddler Playgroup, and a Baby Boot Camp for new and experienced parents to be.

If you are interested in enrolling in the New Parent Support Program, or you have any additional questions, please contact the Fleet and Family Support Center at DSN 314-624-4291.

Comm. 011 39 095-564291