£500k plan set to give personal nurses to teen mums

Published on Wednesday 9 September 2009 09:46

DOZENS of teenage mothers from poor backgrounds are set to take part in a pioneering £500,000 project in the Lothians which will see them being given a personal nurse.

Based on a United States-style programme, nurses will pay regular home visits to 100 vulnerable teenagers throughout their pregnancy and up until the child is aged two.

It is hoped the pilot project – the first of its kind in Scotland – will have a significant impact on the health of both mother and baby.

Six nurses will be brought in, as well as a supervisor, and it is hoped the scheme can begin sourcing mums-to-be to take part by the beginning of next year.

Health chiefs think that if the lives of 100 babies and their vulnerable mothers can be turned around in the next two years, the Scottish Government funding will be more than justified, when taking into account all the future savings it could provide on healthcare and treatment.

Every year there around 600 girls aged 18 and under who fall pregnant, and data has shown in the past that there are far more of them living in impoverished areas.

NHS Lothian's nurse director Melanie Hornett said: "I want to replicate what works in the States.

It is a great opportunity to see how we can move forward in community care."

Nurses will be recruited in time to begin training in November.

By getting the teenagers on board while they are pregnant NHS bosses think they will be more receptive to assistance than they would be otherwise.

Among the aims of the scheme are improving health during pregnancy by transforming their diets and encouraging them not to drink or smoke; bettering the standard of care that both young parents can provide to their new born baby through training and additional information; and helping the parents or mother develop their own future career ambitions which should help lead to a more sound economic grounding for the family. Issues such as the benefits of breastfeeding will also be addressed.

However, there are some uncertainties over the scheme, and it remains to be seen if they will be able to encourage the minimum 100 women needed to take part.

Ms Hornett added: "There are some risks. We may not get the uptake and there will be some other, wider implications for this."

The health board's vice-chairman, Eddie Egan, said: "The evidence from America shows that this is well worth doing from the health inequalities point of view and will save money."

'It was too much for me and I couldn't cope'

SAMANTHA Robertson was only 14 when she fell pregnant, and is exactly the kind of person who would be targeted under this scheme.

Now 20, the Liberton woman has managed to turn things around and set up a website – Sassy Mums – to help others in her position.

She welcomed the latest NHS Lothian initiative, and said there were many young pregnant girls and mothers who would benefit.

"Since setting this website up, we've spoken to a lot who felt they didn't really get that much help and felt really isolated," said Samantha, whose daughter, Leigha, is now five.

Among the problems Samantha encountered was post-natal depression, and she eventually found it impossible to juggle school with looking after her new baby.

She only sat her Standard Grade exams hours after giving birth.

She added: "Because I was so young, I wanted to prove to my family that I could do both and I would be fine. But it was too much and I couldn't cope."

&#149 www.nhslothian.scot.nhs.uk