B.C.'s Ministry of Health announced today the start of a new program devoted to providing vulnerable new mothers with the support they need to prepare for parenthood.

The Nurse Family Partnership Program or NFP will pair public health nurses with young, first-time mothers who have low incomes and who are still in the early stages of their pregnancies -- 28 weeks or earlier.

Nurses will visit their assigned mothers once a week during the pregnancy and at least once a month until the child's second birthday, providing health support and advice for the mother and their families.

B.C.'s program is the first province-wide implementation of NFP in Canada, although Hamilton has implemented a smaller pilot project. The program is based on a successful 30-year NFP program in the U.S. created by Dr. David Olds, a professor of pediatrics at the University of Colorado.

Dr. Charlotte Waddell, director of the Children's Health Policy Centre at Simon Fraser, says the program has a lot of potential.

The U.S. found that with "just that simple two-and-a-half year intervention at the beginning of life, those kids have way fewer problems with anti-social behaviour later in life, and it looks like it's possible they may have reduced anxiety, depression and substance use. Then the moms have way less anti-social behaviour and go on to have much more engagement in the workforce and less welfare dependency," she says.

A lot of the program's success results from nurses and mothers developing strong long-term relationships, she says.

Dr. Waddell says the initial cost of the program could be why it has taken so long to migrate north to Canada.

B.C.'s NFP program is part of a broader $23 million initiative called the Healthy Start program that includes other public health programs for young mothers and children.

But, Dr. Waddell says the program seems like it could eventually pay for itself, with possible savings from less use of the foster care system and other social services.

"We want to assess that in British Columbia to see if that's true here, but you've got to have a long-term vision because you're not going to get those returns, those cost savings for maybe 15 years, and you know, that's a long time in public policy terms," she says.

In a press release by B.C.'s Ministry of Health, Dr. Olds says "Research in the U.S. has shown that NFP improves prenatal health, decreases the risk of child abuse and neglect, and improves long-term outcomes for both children and mothers."

Dr. Olds says they've also seen more participation in the family from fathers.

As the program is implemented in B.C., it will be evaluated by the Children's Health Policy Centre at Simon Fraser University with help from the Offord Centre for Child Studies at McMaster University and Dr. Olds. It's hoped to launch in early 2012.

Ainslie Cruickshank is completing a practicum at The Tyee.