Parent and Child Together (PACT) Project

Note: The PACT program was not responsive to the CEBC's request for information about their program. The following information was obtained from publicly available sources(websites, articles, etc.).

Scientific Rating:
4
Effectiveness Unknown
See scale of 1-6

Relevance to Child Welfare Rating:
1
High
See scale of 1-3

Child Welfare Outcomes: None indicated.

Brief Description:

The Parent and Child Together (PACT) Project has been rated by the CEBC in the area of Interventions for neglect. The PACT program serves young mothers referred by Social Services. Priority is given to mothers who are 16 to 24 years old with children 0 to 3 and who have risk factors associated with neglect. The program is provided in a residential setting of 6 mothers to a unit. The residential portion of the program can last from 12 weeks to 18 months. Follow-up care is provided for 9 months. During the residential portion of the program, mothers are provided training and assessment on basic infant and childcare skills. Other services address partner relationships, household management, and preparation for life in the community. Aftercare services include ongoing childcare assessments, establishing social and community support, and assisting them explore opportunities for education and employment. PACT also provides support for those mothers who have been separated from their children.

Manual and Training section:
The publicly available information indicates that there is some training available for PACT, please contact Benny McDaniel via email at bmcdaniel@barnardos.org.uk.

Relevant Research:
The practice lacks adequate published, peer-reviewed research to meet CEBC criteria for scientific ratings 3 to 1; however it was identified by the topical expert as a program being used in this area, or it is being marketed and/or used in California with child receiving services from child welfare or related systems and their parents/caregivers. Some programs may have some published, peer-reviewed research that does not meet CEBC criteria for Ratings 3 to 1 or may have other studies that have not yet been published in the peer-reviewed literature.

McDaniel, B., Dillenburger, K. (2007). Can childhood neglect be assessed and prevented through childcare skills training? Child Abuse Review, 16, 120-129.

Type of Study: Pretest/Posttest
Number of participants: 4
Population:
Age Range: Mothers 16-25
Race/Ethnicity: Not given
Status (e.g., foster care, CW): Referred by child welfare services for neglect.
Location/Institution: Northern Ireland

Summary: (To include comparison groups, outcomes, measures, notable limitations) Young mothers referred to the PACT program received training in basic infant care, in a residential setting, with a particular emphasis on feeding and bathing. Mothers were given step-by-step instructions based on the Step by Step Childcare Manual (Feldman and Case, 2007). They were evaluated at baseline and training continued until all had reached 80% on the task criteria without prompts. Follow-up observations were taken twice at one-week intervals for bathing and 3 to 4 days for feeding. All mothers reached and maintained criterion levels for bathing. Two mothers maintained criterion levels for feeding, while the other two eventually had their children removed from their care. The authors conclude that neglect can be both assessed and potentially prevented through childcare skills training.

Length of post-intervention follow-up: 2 weeks for bathing, 3 weeks for feeding.

References:
Newman, T. & McDaniel, B. (2005). Getting research into practice: Healing damaged attachment processes in infancy. Child Care in Practice, 11(1), 81-90.

Contact Information:
Name: Benny McDaniel
Affiliation/Agency: Barnardos located in Northern Ireland
Phone: 011+44+02890 682286
E-mail:bmcdaniel@barnardos.org.uk
Website: http://www.child-protection.org/CPT/CPT.htm

Date review compiled: April 2008