MSE Parents Club Part 9

My_Fathers_Daughter

Millie's_Mum wrote: »

I really agreed with Fitzio about HVs, but also weezl made some good points about hidden agendas i think because their role is undefined and a bit 'woolly' and because some of them act like powercrazed battleaxes people are a bit defensive about why they need to visit/be seen (I was).

That said, if I was a HV and someone was dead aganst me with no reason I would want to see them and their child for my own piece of mind.

I will never forget those children who starved to death in their own house in Birmingham, many agencies got it completely wrong in that case one of the things being that their mother never let them be seen by a HV and the HV didn't push it.

I was thinking something similar but didn't know how to express it. I looked up this:

Job description

A health visitor is a qualified and registered nurse or midwife who is specially trained to assess the health needs of individuals, families and the wider community. They aim to promote good health and prevent illness in the community by offering practical help and advice.
The role involves visiting people in their homes, in particular new parents and children under five, as well as working with other sections of the community. Working as a health visitor may also include tackling the impact of social inequality on health, and working closely with at-risk or deprived groups.
Typical work activities

Activities vary according to the nature of the individual role, but may include:

• listening to, advising and supporting people from all backgrounds and age groups;
• advising and informing new parents on issues such as feeding, safety, physical and emotional development, weaning and immunisation;
• delivering child health programmes;
• running parenting groups;
• working in partnership with families to develop and agree tailored health plans addressing individual parenting and health needs;
• managing and attending parent and baby clinics/sessions at surgeries, community and children's centres, and holding specialist clinics on areas such as baby massage, exercise and child development;
• identifying the health needs of neighbourhoods and other groups in the community, such as the homeless;
• working with local communities to help them identify and tackle their own health needs, and encouraging members of deprived communities to participate in their own health care planning;
• running groups dealing with a specific health aspect, such as giving up smoking, and supporting self-help or special needs groups, such as working parents;
• offering counselling to people on issues such as post-natal depression and bereavement;
• diagnosing minor conditions and prescribing low-level medication;
• supporting and training new health visitors;
• maintaining and updating patient records;
• supporting government initiatives to tackle child poverty and social exclusion, such as Sure Start and Home Start ;
• monitoring data to ensure that specific health targets are being met;
• planning and setting up health promotion displays;
• agreeing local health action plans and managing and leading interdisciplinary teams involved in their delivery;
• working in collaboration with other agencies, such as social services, local housing departments, the police, teachers and probation officers;
• participating in strategic-level and developmental meetings.

And then I was thinking about cases where kids have been left home alone or abused and wondered if a lack of HV support contributed to those, not directly obviously, but as an 'in' to social services and making sure that kids who are at risk are identified somehow (before they get to school age).

...but then again it crossed my mind that those families would not be welcoming to HV support anyway...

My HV has been useful to me on occasion and if nothing else served as some 'professional assistance' in co-ordinating and keeping abreast of Benjamins many appointments and tests when he was a baby (and still ongoing).

Maybe Sami is right - maybe it is down to the quality of the HV support?

Mrs_Moc

Happy Birthday to Chris :T yay on being 3!!

I thought my HV was great and never seen it as interfernce at all, but then she was the type that was giving me loads of praise. Flattery got her everywhere with me.

When DH took me to court 6 years ago for custody of my now 8 YO, social services got involved and that was a nightmare. I felt like my parenting skills were under a microscope.

angela6834

SS, has your neighbour been quiet today. Did your OH have any look at meeting today?

SugarSpun

Nothing so far Angela and he's not been up to the office yet. But no noise either, and I think he knows that if he calls the police for a counter-complaint about noise at 11pm on a couple with a small baby he'll end up in trouble rather than us. It's just very annoying.

rose_tinted

Hello, Can i join the thread please? I have 2 lo's and i due my third 28/03/10. Am very scared and can't believe it is going so quick. My eldest lo is 5 and I have a 2 year old. I love this site and I am also going to attempt to pay a little bit of my mortgage and spend less when I am on Mat leave.
Hope to chat to u all soon xx

weezl74

Hello rose_tinted

Welcome:j:j

I'm due my second son 2 days after you!

How old are your other 2?

xxx

rose_tinted

Just to add can't be doing with HV, my first HV was a very strange lady. She stressed me out about my lo's weight gain. There was nothing wrong with her. Suffice to say i haven't been to the HV with my 2nd lo.

Sami_Bee

Millie's_Mum wrote: »

Definitely warmer than my freezing house, it was built in 1876 and I think big draughty holes were a design feature then! Trying to sew some shorts for Eloise (cut down old joggers and jeans) but my fingers are too cold!

lol I have a holey 100+yo house too brrrr :rolleyes:

weezl74 wrote: »

our heating is 60p an hour if on constant... We have a half hour every 3 hours

It's tricky to work it out for other people cos I don't know your gas tariff or boiler efficiency but can't be loads different

HTH xxx

told you she'd know! :cool:

even in my draughty house I think it'll be cheaper than the 10min drive and £5 entry to the playcentre then... (still gonna take Chris 2mo or friday though )

you are so disaplined our heatings been on constant since we got home from skiing

Claire_Jones_3

I've already told elle off but Weezl you are in trouble as well! I had to make some of your flapjacks the other day - needless to say there aren't many left and my diet/losing weight has well and truely stumbled!!

(got raisins and cinnamon for the next set)

emlou2009

Hello rose!

Are your LO's boys or girls? Do you know what your next one is yet?