Abstract:
The "Early Bird Program" is a support group facilitated
by child and family health nurses and offered to families
of infants aged 0-8 weeks in South East Sydney, Australia.
This paper describes the experiences of 20 women
who participated in the Early Bird groups and 20 women
who chose to use individual consultations with the child
and family health nurse. The qualitative evaluation used
focus groups and interviews with the 40 women, and
data were analysed using content analysis. Key findings
show the Early Bird Program mothers received support
and knowledge from both the nurses and each other,
while the women who utilised the individual consultations
with the nurses sought out and received specific
services and information that focused on the baby. The
group approach appears to promote group relationships
and to empower mothers as a group by de-emphasising
the power and expertise of the professional.
