4.4  Key steps to follow while conducting a home visit

To creating a caring environment and to develop confidence in your ability among the family members, you should apply the following practices:

• Know and show that you respect the local beliefs, culture and norms during communication.
• Greet everyone using the local terms.
• Explain the reasons for the visit to the mother and family members, using simple words in local language.
• Allow enough time for general conversation and confidence building.
• Act with confidence, and speak confidently with a gentle tone and voice.
• Be respectful to every member of the family.

Ask about the well being of the mother and the baby and discover whether either of them have any health problems, or if there is any difficulty in making the adjustments to having a new baby in the family. Use the standard screening approach: ask, check, classify and take action. The most critical task is to use the screening cards to help you to identify any life-threatening conditions or general danger signs in postpartum mothers and newborns. You already learned how to do this in Study Sessions 1 and 3.

Using the counselling cards, counsel the mother about her own health and the baby’s health and condition. Always check her understanding after counselling (see Section 4.5 below).

Complete the postnatal home visit form and make an appointment for the next visit. Thank everyone for making you welcome in their home.