Время Науки. 2016.Выпуск 2 -The Times of Science

Ruth Remmel-Faßbender Рут Реммель-Фасбендер 12 №2 The work of a family midwife extends far beyond the medical midwifery services, encompassing the entire family situation and the delivery of close support and care in the psychosocial field. Indication, duration and focal contents of the support are set out by the commissioning office and in agreement with the family. The family midwife visits the family at home, on average for four to six hours per week. The support period runs from the beginning of the pregnancy through the 1st year of the child's life. However, this duration can also be extended in special cases. The costs are borne by the youth welfare office. In accordance with preventative child protection, the aim of the family midwife service is the avoidance of youth welfare measures and the early detection of further-reaching support needs, as well as the introduction of further support, assistance and advisory services in the medical and psychosocial field (for example participation in medical screenings). A central aim of the family midwife service is to enable families to care for and raise the child in an appropriate way. Family midwives aim to promote the mother-child relationship, convey practical care skills and prevent high-risk behaviour and high levels of stress. The operations coordinator is responsible for coordinating deployment, as well as documentation, quality assurance, supervision and team structure. The sustainability of the work of the full-time family midwife can be safeguarded by the provision of further support to the young family through the interlinked services of the local youth welfare organisations, such as the simultaneous or subsequent deployment of a voluntary family mentor, or transitioning to pregnancy exercises, infant care courses, a mother and baby group, playgroups, toddler groups, mothers' meetings and cookery courses. Development possibilities for the utilisation of synergies exist in family midwives also cooperating on an intensified basis with others. At the same time, the families have easier access to other support systems through the eradication of a fear of the unknown. We know for a fact that families in stressful situations in particular do not actively seek out support options. 9 Evaluation In order to establish early prevention as effective and preventative support services, numerous model projects have been funded in the states, within the framework of the action programme " Frühe Hilfen für Eltern und Kinder und Soziale Frühwarnsysteme" [ early prevention for parents and children and social early warning systems]. These projects have been evaluated, in order to gain experience and knowledge about early support services. 10 The evaluation results available to date show that reliable parenting can also be achieved under the toughest circumstances, if the parents/mother and their children receive early intensive, tailored and empathetic support. After one year of intensive mother-child support within the framework of the research project "Steps towards effective and enjoyable parenting", it was possible to ensure that almost three quarters of babies developed a secure bond with their 9 See also the tasks of family midwives: National Centre on Early Prevention 2012 and 2013 10 http://www.fruehehilfen.de/fruehe-hilfen/forschung/evaluation/[ 07.09.2015]