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Supervisors advance DPH plan to bring Nurse-Family Partnership to San Francisco with $650,123 grant
Summary
The committee advanced a DPH resolution to accept a $650,123 federal pass-through grant to start the Nurse-Family Partnership in San Francisco, funding five public health nurses and a clerk to provide home visits to first-time, high-risk mothers. Public comment urged broader outreach and local hires.
The Budget and Finance Committee moved forward a resolution authorizing the San Francisco Department of Public Health (DPH) to retroactively accept and expend $650,123 in federal pass-through funds to start the Nurse-Family Partnership in the city.
DPH staff described the Nurse-Family Partnership as "an evidence based program," a one-on-one public-health nurse home-visiting model that enrolls first-time mothers by 28 weeks' gestation and continues visits through the child's first two years. The department said the program will target low-income mothers, teen mothers, women exposed to domestic violence, residents of high-crime neighborhoods and those in public housing, and estimated it could serve about 100 new mothers in the first one to two years while drawing on a local referral base at San Francisco General Hospital.
DPH said the grant requires no local match and will fund five new public-health nurses and one clerk, all 100 percent grant-funded. Officials noted the Nurse-Family Partnership has about 30 years of national evidence, with randomized trials that DPH said have shown improved maternal economic self-sufficiency, reduced welfare use, better employment outcomes, fewer subsequent pregnancies and reduced childhood injuries. The department also cited an economic estimate that the program yields roughly $5 in benefits for every $1 invested.
Supervisors pressed for details about benchmarks and measurement. DPH said the model includes specific outcome benchmarks and that it expects federal benchmarking tied to the new grant; the department said it has not yet seen the new federal benchmarks but will incorporate them as available.
During public comment Francisco De Costa urged longer public-comment time and argued the local need may be much larger than DPH's initial enrollment estimate — "thousands, not 1,000," he said — and asked for a public website where program data would be posted. De Costa also urged hiring staff with roots in the communities to be served.
The committee recorded a motion to forward the resolution with a recommendation; the motion was seconded and carried without objection. The item will go to the full board with the committee's recommendation.
Next steps: DPH will proceed with grant acceptance and implementation under the terms described and will be expected to report on benchmarks and outcomes as federal benchmarks and local evaluation plans are finalized.
