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.

Benefit overview

Expecting a baby is an exciting time that can be filled with joy as you embark on this new experience in your life. You may be juggling many competing priorities that involve meeting the demands of military life, working, taking care of toddlers and children, and taking care of your family, while also trying to take care of yourself.

It may also be a time filled with some anxiety and questions. But the New Parent Support Program can help you navigate through pregnancy, transition successfully into parenthood and provide a nurturing environment for your baby and young children.

The primary goal of the NPSP is to enhance the lives of infants, toddlers, children and parents; promote safety, health and well-being; and help families thrive by empowering parents with information to meet the challenges of parenthood while maintaining a military lifestyle. The program offers a variety of services, including providing information about prenatal health, infant care, nursing/breastfeeding, early child development, bonding with your baby, safe sleep environments, shaken baby syndrome (abusive head trauma), parenting education and more.

The NPSP helps military parents, including expectant parents, provide a nurturing environment for their children. Parenthood is like any other job — there’s a lot of learning at first no matter if it is your first child or not. The more guidance you get, the more confident you feel in carrying out your duties. The program offers support and guidance by helping parents:

• Build strong, healthy bonds with their infants and toddlers, which will lay the foundation for their social and emotional development.
• Manage the demands of parenting, especially when it is impacted by deployments and other military operations.
• Remain flexible and responsive when navigating daily life or balancing more than one child’s needs.
• Build a strong support network through connections to other parents and local resources.
• Respond to infant and toddler behavior sensitively and be attuned to their developmental needs.
• Find services in your community when you need them.

The New Parent Support Program is a voluntary program of personal development and educational services for first-time parents with children up to 3 years of age. The focus of the program is to educate and prepare parents for pregnancy, childbirth and the first three years of infant care. contact family advocacy for more information at DSN 312-276-8217 or 805-606-8217.