Parenting Support Needs Assessment: Screening for Child Maltreatment Risk in Young Families

ObjectivesThe objective of the study was to examine the Parenting Support Needs Assessment (PSNA) for content validity, internal consistency reliability, and clinical usefulness. The PSNA was designed for use by primary care clinicians who care for young children and their families, to identify families with risk factors for child maltreatment.MethodsPhase I of the study consisted of the content validity assessment by child maltreatment experts, and phase II was a pilot test of the PSNA and referral algorithm by nurse practitioners (NPs) for clinical usefulness. Data obtained during the pilot testing were used to examine individual PSNA items, establishing an estimate of internal consistency reliability and identify the instrument's clinical usefulness.ResultsThe PSNA instrument and referral algorithm was found to have content validity and clinical usefulness. The number of referrals to family support social service agencies increased from 4 to 22 over the pre-PSNA use (with different children) and the instrument exceeded the internal consistency reliability threshold of .80.ConclusionsThe PSNA instrument was found to be valid, reliable, and clinically useful in the primary care setting. The PSNA represents a significant step forward in screening for child maltreatment risk in families of young children during routine primary care.