Nov 13, 2003 By Dave Zuchowski For The 4 min read

Jacklin Bankhead, 25, of Masontown, started with the Nurse Family Partnership late in her pregnancy and, as a result, had a lot of catching up to do. Now that her daughter, Jazalin, is 5 months old, she’s come to see the value of the program. “I used to think I knew a lot about child rearing because I helped raise my niece and sister, who’s 10 years younger than me,” she said. “But my nurse taught me a lot about nutrition I didn’t know. As a result I now eat a lot less junk food and more fresh fruits and vegetables.”

A smoker, Bankhead has also learned to go outside to smoke and not contaminate the air in her apartment.

She’s also learned things from her nurse about walker safety, infant car seats and what action to take if her baby starts choking, details she didn’t know before starting the program.

Bankhead, who was referred to the program by the local Women, Infants and Children (WIC) office, also learned how to be patient with her new child. She now takes a deep breath and counts when things get out of hand rather than lose her temper.

She’s also learned from her nurse, Janet Debolt, how to be positive about the future.

“I’m now a full-time student going to Laurel Business Institute, where I hope to earn a specialized associates degree in the spring of 2005 and become a medical assistant.”

Besides benefiting from the nurse’s regular visits, Bankhead also phoned the NFP office on several occasions when she needed immediate information, like the time her daughter wouldn’t eat and wanted to sleep most of the day. When she found out that the summer heat may have been a contributing factor, she installed an air conditioner in the baby’s room, which helped alleviate the situation.

Bankhead considers herself fortunate because her family lives close by in New Geneva. When she goes off to school, for instance, her mother watches Jazalin, and her sister, Jamie, also helps out from time to time. Even so, Bankhead is full of praise for the program and has become a staunch advocate of NFP.

“If you’re a first-time mother, I’d recommend that you apply,” she said. “It’s a really great program that’s taught and helped me a lot.”

Brandy Kino, 21, of Masontown has been with the NFP program ever since she was eight weeks pregnant, now a total of 15 months. She learned about the program from a worker in her doctor’s office who thought she and her disabled husband, Paul, 31, might benefit from the intensive program that helps first-time mothers learn parenting skills.

Kino and her husband now feel confident they can better raise their daughter, Autumn, as a result of their participation in the program.

“On her first visit, our nurse, Mary Kay Swanson, introduced herself and told us what we could expect from the program,” she said. “In later visits, she also brought us a lot of information on pregnancy and the labor process and taught us how to hold, feed and bath the baby. Every week, she brought us something new. I still have every paper she brought us – three binders full.”

Swanson also checked Autumn’s weight, asked the parents about regular doctor’s visits, made sure she got all her immunizations and gave them protective covers for the electric outlets. Because the Kinos live in a two-bedroom apartment, she also suggested that they install a safety gate in the living room to stop August from going in the hallway and tumbling down the stairs.

At the beginning of November, Brandy took a job as a cashier at a local Dollar General to help bring in a little extra money for the Christmas holidays.

As a result, the daytime baby watching chores fall on Paul’s shoulders.

“I sat in on every session with the nurse and feel very confident about taking care of Autumn,” he said. “I asked a lot of questions, and Mary Kay was very helpful in getting me the information I needed.”

Because Paul was a smoker, the nurse encouraged him to quit to better his and his family’s health. Two months ago, Paul smoked his last cigarette.