Karitane Volunteer Program (KVP)
Sydney South West Area Health Service
This project was entered in the 2007 NSW Health Awards, Building Regional and other Partnerships for Health category.
Contact: Wendy Jamieson
Abstract
It is increasingly acknowledged that many of the factors that influence adult health and well-being have their roots in childhood and that the first three years of life are critical for childhood development. Volunteer home visiting (VHV) and support is viewed as one mode of intervention with potential to prevent poor child and family outcomes.
The Karitane Volunteer Program (KVP) offers the unique skills of specially educated volunteers, with their own parenting experience, to assist paid staff to provide home visits, telephone and group support to families in the antenatal period and families with children up to three years of age.
KVP links community volunteers with families, who identify as needing extra support, to build resilience, protective factors, social capital and stronger communities.
According to Stone (2003) social capital can be understood as networks of social relations based on trust and reciprocity. Building social capital requires a social capital friendly approach to service delivery. KVP integrated a social capital approach by supporting the community (volunteers) to support their vulnerable members.
The full entry document can be downloaded in the formats listed below:
Karitane Volunteer Program (KVP) (254KB)
Karitane Volunteer Program (KVP) (100KB)
