Factors associated with clients not keeping their initial home health visit

Public health nursing home visits are one strategy used by health care providers and communities to improve the health of pregnant women and families with young children. This study investigates the influence of client characteristics, nurse characteristics, and nurse-client interaction on clients keeping or not keeping their initial maternal and child health promotion home visit appointments with a public health nurse. Results of the study suggest the hiring decisions for nurse home visitors should give priority to the nurse's experience and education, as well as his/her practice style of handling maternal/child health visits.