Quality audit of an early childhood nurse program for resettled refugees

Background: In New South Wales (NSW), the use of mainstream early childhood nursing services by families of refugee background is limited. Our aims were to describe a targeted Early Childhood Nurse Program after its first 12 months of operation, including staff impressions of achievements and how the program might be improved.
Methods: Routinely collected data over a 12-month period (1 March 2017 to 28 February 2018) was extracted and analysed using SPSS V25. Qualitative data collection consisted of discussions with the program’s early childhood nurses to identify relevant service delivery and clinical themes, and potential areas for improvement.
Results: A total of 260 children of refugee background under 6 years of age were seen by the program, being 98% of those referred. At first visit, 25% of children were under 12 months of age. The top three countries of birth were Iraq (41.2%), Australia (21.5%) and Syria (15.8%). Asylum seekers accounted for nearly one third of those seen. More than half of the children seen required referral to at least one other service.
Reported program achievements included increased accessibility of healthcare in the early years, culturally appropriate service provision, and early identification and intervention for child and maternal health issues. Areas for program improvement were enhanced data management and increased resources.
Conclusion: The program is improving access and care for vulnerable refugee and asylum seeker children in the community. It can serve as a model for implementing refugee and asylum seeker specific early childhood services, state-wide and nationally.