SafeCare Kenya: Supporting Parents to Prevent Health Issues in Young Children
Official title: Implementing SafeCare Kenya to Reduce Noncommunicable Disease Burden: Building Community Health Workers' Capacity to Support Parents with Young Children
Funded at Pacific University · NIH-11144339 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project helps community health workers in Kenya teach parents new skills to protect young children from maltreatment, which can lead to long-term health problems.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Pacific University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Forest Grove, United States) |
| Project start | September 19, 2023 |
| Project end | May 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $202,163 |
| NIH project number | 5R01HD112043-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11144339 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants are parents with young children in Kenya who are interested in learning new parenting skills and receiving support from community health workers.
✕Less likely to help
Patients outside of Kenya or those without young children would not directly benefit from this specific program.
What this research studies
Many children in Kenya face challenges like maltreatment, which can cause stress and increase their risk for mental health issues and injuries later in life. This project introduces SafeCare Kenya, a program designed to improve parenting skills and reduce child maltreatment. Community health workers will learn how to deliver this program to parents with young children. By strengthening families early on, we hope to lower the chances of children developing noncommunicable diseases as they grow up.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this program could help prevent child maltreatment and reduce the risk of serious health conditions for children in Kenya as they become adults.
How similar studies have gone: SafeCare is an evidence-based program, and this project adapts and examines its implementation and effectiveness in Kenya.
Where this research is happening
-
Pacific University
Forest Grove, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Shanley, Jenelle R — Pacific University
- Study coordinator: Shanley, Jenelle R
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
How parents' public work programs affect children's health and learning in LMICs
A study will look at how families' participation in government cash-for-work programs influences kids’ health, education, and well-being in several low- and middle-income countries.
-
How parents' participation in public work programs may affect children's health and education in low- and middle-income countries
A study at Duke University will look at how families in poor countries who join public work programs might influence their children’s health, schooling, and well-being.
-
Building Community Health Workers’ Capacity to Support Parents with Young Children in Kenya
A project in Kenya trains and supports Community Health Workers to help parents of young children prevent and reduce risk factors for noncommunicable diseases.
-
PREEMIE PROGRESS: a family program to help parents of very preterm babies
A family-centered program that teaches parents how to care for very preterm infants, offers psychosocial support, and connects families with resources to address social needs.
-
Culturally tailored Youth Mental Health First Aid for Asian American Parents
A program helps Asian American parents learn how to recognize and respond to their teens’ mental health signs in a culturally respectful way.
-
Information and social media use for autism info in young children
A research project looks at how speech-language pathologists and parents of young autistic children use social media for information and what makes that information trustworthy.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.