This suite of 4 documents contains the following commissioning guides:
- Background information on commissioning and service model
- Model specification for 0 to 19 healthy child programme health visiting and school nursing services
- Measuring performance and outcomes
- Reference guide to evidence and outcomes
This guidance is for local authorities that are commissioning public health services for children and young people, and in particular, delivering the healthy child programme.
The healthy child programme was established in 2009 by the Department of Health, with the aim of ensuring that every child gets a good and healthy start in life. The programme aims to bring together the health service, education services and other partners, to deliver an effective programme for improving the health and wellbeing of children and young people.
The healthy child programme is divided into 3 sub-programmes:
- Healthy child programme: pregnancy and the first 5 years of life
- Healthy child programme: from 5 to 19 years old
- Healthy child programme rapid review to update evidence
The healthy child programme is of particular relevance to the antenatal and newborn screening and national immunisation programmes as it aims to ensure that children and young people receive the full service offer. This includes: health promotion, screening, immunisation and surveillance. This is of specific importance to:
- The new baby review:
- checking screening result status for: newborn bloodspot for all conditions present including all transfers in aged 1 year and under, newborn and infant physical examination performed within 72 hours, and hearing screening outcome
- promotion of immunisations: adherence to the vaccination schedule for babies born to women who are hepatitis B positive; assessment of maternal measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) status; and promotion of 2 vaccinations to protect future pregnancies
2. 6 to 8 week review:
- promotion of immunisations: adherence to the vaccination schedule for babies born to women who are hepatitis B positive; assessment of maternal MMR status; and promotion of 2 vaccinations to protect future pregnancies
- checking screening result status for: newborn bloodspot for all conditions present including all transfers in aged 1 year and under, and newborn and infant physical examination performed at 6 to 8 weeks
3. Immunisation:
- reviewing immunisation and vaccine status and delivery in accordance with the immunisation schedule
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