Pulitzer Prize Winners Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn Recommend Supporting Nurse-Family Partnership in Their New Book on Making a Difference

DENVER, Sept. 23, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Pulitzer Prize winners Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn recommend supporting Nurse-Family Partnership ® (NFP) in their new book, "A PATH APPEARS: Transforming Lives, Creating Opportunities," about making a difference in the world and how to give back effectively. Kristof and WuDunn are the authors of the number one bestseller "Half the Sky," and Kristof is a columnist at The New York Times.

In the book, Kristof and WuDunn share the story of NFP founder David Olds, Ph.D., and how he developed Nurse-Family Partnership – a nurse home visiting program for first-time, low-income moms – to make a difference in the lives of young children. They recognize the stunning success and outcomes of NFP that lead to a reduction in child abuse and juvenile crime, and shared how local governments became interested in NFP, as they write, "as a way to fight poverty and save on welfare costs." 

"The Nurse-Family Partnership has now grown to have a presence in more than forty states and is spreading to other countries, including Britain, Netherlands, Canada, and Australia," wrote Kristof and WuDunn. "Yet, because of limited financing, it still serves only 2 to 3 percent of the need in the United States. That's a stark example of mistaken priorities. Here we have one of the most rigorously backed antipoverty programs in America, one that pays for itself several times over in reduced costs later on, and yet it has funds to serve only 2 to 3 percent of eligible families. That's infuriating."

Kristof and WuDunn note the strong return on an investment to NFP – up to over a $5 return for every $1 invested – and recommend donating to NFP at www.givetonfp.org. They stress the critical importance of intervening early in life to reach children, as they write, "in the crucial window when the brain is developing and the foundations for adult life are being laid."

"Kristof and WuDunn share the most effective ways on how individuals can make a difference and offer real solutions for effective social change. They balance sharing research with rich storytelling that connects both the head with the heart," said Thomas R. Jenkins Jr., NFP president and CEO. "We thank them for advocating to give to organizations, like Nurse-Family Partnership, that are backed by evidence and will have the most impact on changing lives and addressing the social determinants of health."   

The Nurse-Family Partnership program is a national home visiting program for low-income women who are having their first babies. Each woman is paired with a nurse who provides her with home visits throughout her pregnancy until her child's second birthday. The program's main goals are to improve pregnancy outcomes, children's health and development and women's personal health and economic self-sufficiency.  Nurse-Family Partnership currently serves over 29,600 women in 43 states, the U.S. Virgin Islands and six Tribal communities.

For more information on "A PATH APPEARS: Transforming Lives, Creating Opportunities," visit apathappears.org/.

About Nurse-Family Partnership
The Nurse-Family Partnership National Service Office (www.nursefamilypartnership.org) is committed to producing enduring improvements in the health and well-being of low-income, first-time parents and their children by helping communities implement and sustain an evidence-based public health program of home visiting by registered nurses. Nurse-Family Partnership is the most rigorously tested maternal and early childhood health program of its kind. Randomized, controlled trials conducted over 37 years demonstrate multi-generational outcomes that benefit society economically and reduce long-term social service expenditures. Nurse-Family Partnership is headquartered in Denver, Colorado.

SOURCE Nurse-Family Partnership