Chicago Family Connects (CFC)

The Chicago Family Connects (CFC) program provides evidence-based nurse home visiting and coordinated referral program for City of Chicago birthing families with newborns that will bridge the gap between parents and community resources. The program is designed to: identify and prioritize family needs by screening mothers and newborns for health, safety, and family well-being; respond immediately to identified needs by providing on-the-spot interventions, education and support; reduce maternal and infant mortality by providing a universal service intervention designed to address factors that contribute to increased risk (consistent with recommendations in the Illinois Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Report issued by IDPH); respond with longer term solutions via appropriate referrals to formal and informal services (including other state funded programs like evidence-based home visiting, including Healthy Families Illinois, Women's Infant and Children (WIC) and Early Head Start); and improve agency coordination to ensure a seamless experience for participants using follow-up services.

This model fills a need to address infant and maternal mortality and the significant racial disparity in these rates in the City of Chicago and Illinois. The Family Connects program is operational in 16 other states, is evidenced based, and shows potential for statewide implementation to provide critical linkages to systems of support and care to reduce the infant/maternal mortality rate which is the primary goal of the Bureau of Maternal Child Health.

Contacts

Bureau Page: Maternal and Child Health

Email: Bureau of Maternal & Child Health

Information & Resources