SafeCare Kenya: training community health workers to support parents of 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-11375539 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project trains community health workers to help Kenyan parents learn parenting and safety skills to prevent child maltreatment and 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) | $201,814 |
| NIH project number | 3R01HD112043-03S1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11375539 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants are parents or primary caregivers of children aged 0–11 who live in the Kenyan communities where SafeCare Kenya is offered and who are willing to work with community health workers.
✕Less likely to help
People without young children, caregivers outside the participating regions, or those unwilling to accept home visits or coaching are unlikely to benefit from participation.
What this research studies
As a parent in Kenya, this project would bring an evidence-based program called SafeCare into my community by training local community health workers to visit families and teach caregiving, home safety, and health-seeking skills. If I join, community health workers may provide home visits, coaching, and connections to local services to help me care for my young child. The team will try different ways to deliver the program and track whether families use the skills, whether harmful parenting practices fall, and whether children's health and wellbeing improve. The work is done in partnership with the Kenyan Ministry of Health and local groups.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, families could get stronger parenting support, fewer instances of child maltreatment, and reduced long-term risk of noncommunicable diseases for children.
How similar studies have gone: SafeCare and other parenting programs have reduced child maltreatment in prior trials in several countries, though adapting and scaling SafeCare specifically in Kenya to target NCD risk is relatively new.
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
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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.