Evaluating the Effects of a Targeted Home Visiting Program on Maternal and Child Health Outcomes

Malte Sandner, Thomas Cornelissen (), Tanja Jungmann () and Peggy Herrmann ()
Additional contact information
Tanja Jungmann: University of Rostock
Peggy Herrmann: Hannover Medical School (MHH)

No 10715, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: We evaluate the effects of home visiting targeted towards disadvantaged first-time mothers on maternal and child health outcomes. Our analysis exploits a randomized controlled trial and combines rich longitudinal survey data with unique administrative health data. In a context in which the target group has comprehensive health care access, we find that home visiting has no effects on most types of health utilization, health behaviors, and physical health measures. However, the intervention has a remarkably robust and sizable positive effect on maternal mental health, reducing depressions reported in the survey data and prescriptions of psycholeptics recorded in the administrative data.

Keywords: mental health; disadvantaged families; child health; early childhood intervention (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I14 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 45 pages
Date: 2017-04
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-exp and nep-hea
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

Published - published in: Journal of Health Economics, 2018, 58, 269 - 283

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Related works:
Journal Article: Evaluating the effects of a targeted home visiting program on maternal and child health outcomes (2018)
Working Paper: Evaluating the Effects of a Targeted Home Visiting Program on Maternal and Child Health Outcomes (2017)
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