The 2023 Motown Experience: Birth & Breastfeeding Conference
Sessions & Learning Objectives
“Home Visiting Programs and Doula Services: It Does Take a Village”
Gaylotta Murray, M.Ed & Robena Hill
Direct Service
Organizational and Programmatic Sustainability
This workshop will introduce participants to a viable partnership between home visiting programs and Doula services, by presenting how each supports the perinatal and postpartum stages to giving birth. Participants will explore successful outcomes, in particular breastfeeding support, early childhood home visiting services, early childhood education and provide a creative space for participants to imagine how they may create partnerships. There will be small group discussions to facilitate open dialogue and communication that may create new awareness and understanding.
Learning Objectives:
- Identify the key components of a home visitor- Doula partnership.
- Describe the benefits of a home visitor & doula partnership.
- Explain cross-silo leadership and its important role in this scenario.
“Radical Resilience: Unfolding the Complexities of Disparities through Recruitment & Community Engagement”
Organizational and Programmatic Sustainability
Despite advances in medical technology and access to healthcare, Black women are three to four times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than white women. Addressing these disparities requires a multi-faceted approach that addresses social determinants of health. Promoting health equity and engaging communities in the design and implementation of interventions. To ensure that the voices of Black women are centered in this research, we employed community-engaged recruitment strategies to recruit participants. Health portals are web-based platforms that allow for online interactions between healthcare providers and patients.
This allows an overview of the success of the methodology through data collection, improvements, and satisfaction among the families. This community engagement involves promoting participatory decision-making and co-ownership of research findings to ensure that the voices of Black women are heard and valued. Achieving organizational and programmatic sustainability is critical for promoting health equity in Black maternal and infant health. By maximizing exposure to recruitment efforts and community engagement strategies, organizations and programs can improve efficiency, enhance data analysis, improve participant engagement, and build trust with communities. These efforts can contribute to lasting improvements in maternal and infant health outcomes for Black families and communities.
Learning Objectives:
- Identify the barriers that prevent Black families and communities from accessing prenatal care and breastfeeding support services.
- Benefits of recruitment efforts to increase awareness of birth and breastfeeding practices among Black families and communities
- Evaluate the effectiveness of community engagement in building trust between patients and their families with healthcare providers.
“Parental Mental Illness: Understanding it’s Impact on the Early Relationship”
Beverly Weathington, LMSW & Carolyn Dayton, PhD,LP,LMSW,IMH-E(IV)
Direct Service
Training and Education
This training will examine PMAD’s (Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders) and the impact that it has on parents/caregivers and their babies and young children. Approximately 1 in 8 women experience symptoms of postpartum depression with those numbers being higher for women exposed to poverty and violence. We will examine how depression, anxiety and other mood disorders affects the mother/caregiver’s ability to be available for her infant/young child. We will also discuss a model of care that provides mental health services and support to parents with PMAD’s in a pediatric setting.
Learning Objectives:
- Explain the meaning of Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders and how they present in new mothers/caregivers.
- Compare the difference of “baby blues” and clinical depression and the impact that depression and anxiety has on maternal functioning.
- Describe a model intervention program that provides services and support to mothers/caregivers with PMAD’s (Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders) and their babies and young children in a pediatric setting.
“Birth, Breastfeeding, and Workplace Rights”
Training and Education
Advocacy and Policy
Managing work while pregnant or breastfeeding is a major challenge for many families. When faced with discrimination or a lack of support at work, babies and parents can experience severe health impacts during pregnancy and postpartum, and many breastfeeding parents feel forced to stop breastfeeding altogether. This session will explore the new legal protections at work for pregnant and lactating employees, and what opportunities there are for future change.
Participants will learn about the new Pregnant Workers Fairness Act which requires employers to provide changes at work (or leave) to protect a worker’s health, and the PUMP Act, which requires all employers to provide lactation break time and space. We will explore common scenarios faced by pregnant and postpartum workers, and ways birth and breastfeeding advocates and care providers can help. Participants will leave the session with resources and ideas for how to bring more protections to pregnant and breastfeeding workers in their community.
Learning Objectives:
- Explain core legal protections for pregnancy accommodations and lactation breaks at work.
- Employ tools and strategies to respond to common workplace challenges they may encounter in their communities while supporting lactating workers. Tools include writing notes to help their clients advocate with their employer.
- Identify opportunities for future advocacy to protect birthing community members’ ability to stay healthy and keep their jobs.
“Breastfeeding: A Choice, a Behavior, and a Solution”
Advocacy and Policy
This presentation will discuss the story of Margaret Garner, an enslaved women in the 1800s who fled slavery with her children and husband and escaped to the north where they were caught. Rather than return to slavery, Margaret attempted to kill herself and her children. One child was murdered, one drowned, and she and the other two children survived. The presentation will discuss the conditions of enslavement, diet, and people treated as property. It will discuss breastfeeding and motherhood within those conditions of trauma, emotional distress, and pain. The arduous experiences of Margaret can be seen in remnant today. Within the black community the choice to birth and breastfeed is difficult considering stressful societal conditions, food deserts, health conditions, trauma, strains on emotional and mental health, support, and many other things. There are many factors to consider when making the choice to birth and breastfeed as a black women this presentation will ponder a myriad of factors and propose a few ways families, birth and breastfeeding workers, and friends can help “lighten the load” and provide resources and support to birthing women as they make the choice.
Learning Objectives:
- Describe the story of Margaret Garner.
- List situations and behaviors that exist in the black community that continue to limit or diminish the choice to breastfeed.
- Identify one way they can encourage and promote healthy behavior from expecting black mothers.
“ROOTTed in Advocacy: Collective Work, Responsibility, and Self Determination in the struggle for Black Family Health Equity”
Direct Service
Advocacy and Policy
The 400-plus-year history of racist policy has caused a chain of reactive contravention, to the health and well-being of Black families. The structural system of America lacks efficacy in health equity which is clearly represented in the unmet social determinants of health. Now that being aware of the systemic issues pertaining to Black Maternal and Infant Health is popular. Access to funding is predicated on how we must be rescued from ourselves. Gatekeeping entities with savior policies and processes are acknowledged to be the primary support to Black Families. Versus the Black community foundation being our own representation, innovation, and leadership to educate and counteract the lies that scream “we are not enough.”
ROOTT was founded in 2017 on principles that intentionally focused on elevating the role of Perinatal Support. When combined with public health research and the advancement of public policy, ROOTT is clear that we represent Black Family Health. ROOTT’s philosophy on full-spectrum care has cultivated and sustained a 0% Maternal and Infant Mortality rate. On the other hand, even with phenomenal statistics, our model is frequently neglected. ROOTT and other organizations with similar principles will remain true to ourselves by refusing to change our narrative to fit in a box we were never meant to fit into. Our why is ROOTTed in Black autonomy, stability, and re-empowerment that centers Black Families through the framework of reproductive justice.
Learning Objectives:
- Educate on Black family-led programs and their impact on birthing and breastfeeding outcomes.
- Provide historical context on structural determinants and the unmet social determinants of health.
“It’s Like Going to a Cousin’s House: Re-introducing the WIC program to the Black Community using the CinnaMoms Model”
Toncé Jackson, Ed.D., MPH, RDN, cLE
Direct Service
During the presentation, Dr. Toncé Jackson and Karla Washington will share the findings from the USDA grant, highlighting how the CinnaMoms model can be scaled and transferred to other WIC agencies to support, engage, and retain Black families, as well as build the Black workforce at WIC. The longitudinal data, along with additional qualitative data from two focus groups, will be used to amplify the breastfeeding journeys of the CinnaMoms participants. Furthermore, they will introduce the CinnaMoms Ambassador Agency Initiative and provide a glimpse into the unique CinnaMoms “Café” Lounge, which repurposes WIC space to create a welcoming environment where families can rest and connect.
CinnaMoms was initially established in 2015 by Dr. Toncé Jackson and Karla Washington. As certified lactation educators, their determination was to enhance breastfeeding rates among Black/African American women by offering support circles and culturally appropriate resources to pregnant and postpartum families in the PHFE WIC program. Over time, CinnaMoms evolved to provide comprehensive support to advance maternal health. In 2021, CinnaMoms received special funding from USDA through the WIC Special Project’s Innovation grant to formalize the evidence base for the CinnaMoms Experience, demonstrating how CinnaMoms enhances the WIC certification period for participating Black/African American families.
Learning Objectives:
- Describe the CinnaMoms model and it can be scaled and transferred to other WIC agencies.
- Recall how CinnaMoms amplified the voices and lived experiences of families through longitudinal data and focus groups.
- Visit CinnaMoms.org and explore the CinnaMoms Ambassador Agency Initiative and recall how CinnaMoms transformed a WIC office.
“Amidst Post-Pandemic Pandemonium: Prioritizing the Needs of Black Birthing Families”
Training and Education
In the three years since the COVID19 public health crisis first rocked the world, we’ve experienced devastating disease and death alongside prevailing racial injustice erupted in the wake of the murder of George Floyd by police. These are accompanied by economic and political upheaval permeated by the January 6, 2021 violent insurrection at the nation’s capital reflective of racial undertones that reflect what many regard as an increasingly polarized nation. These conditions further diminish life chances, particularly for BIPOC people, at least in part, by inhibiting their ability to experience best health outcomes. So, although the overall spread of the coronavirus has slowed, we are now left with stark social, political, and public health challenges that outlast the biological infection itself, threatening the health and well-being of our nation. The Maternal Health Crisis is one major concern – where morbidity and mortality rates have significantly increased especially for Black/African American women and infants. Quality healthcare support has proven insufficient. This session provides a brief review of Black maternal societal status in our post-pandemic world, and outlines ways that help ensure Black mothers and their babies may be uplifted and supported.
Learning Objectives:
- Describe Black maternal societal status as impacted by post-pandemic environment.
- Identify strategies to uplift and enhance life chances for Black birthing families as we move beyond the unprecedented COVID-19 health crisis.
“The State of Birth Justice- MI Momnibus”
Advocacy and Policy
The MI State of Birth Justice is a community coalition working to build urban-rural partnerships to increase access to midwifery care across the state of Michigan. Our purpose is to educate, inform, and engage our communities statewide in realizing Birth Justice. The mission of The MI State of Birth Justice is to educate, inform, and engage our communities statewide in realizing Birth Justice.
Learning Objectives:
- Participants will be able to identify 3 key components of the MI State of Birth Justice and describe its mission.
- Participants will trace the current rates of maternal mortality/morbidity to specific root causes and structural inequities.
- Participants will be able to identify specific strategies used by Birth Justice advocates in urban and rural areas that address structural inequities to improve perinatal health in MI.
“Building Black Breastfeeding Initiatives”
Advocacy and Policy
Organizational and Programmatic Sustainability
Since 2007, BMBFA’s founder, Kiddada Green has spent countless hours building Black breastfeeding programs and initiatives. She uses her robust experience and research to create a framework for successful Black breastfeeding initiatives and programs. In this conceptual model each element is a key component to success. Success is defined as an initiative or program that leads to more satisfying breastfeeding experiences or outcomes. Throughout the presentation, Kiddada highlights the building blocks for success.
Learning Objectives:
- List 5 pillars of the Framework to Build Black breastfeeding Initiatives.
- Identify the foundation for building Black breastfeeding initiatives.
- Describe the role that race, equity and breastfeeding plays in program design.
“Boy, Man, Father: Male Involvement within Maternal and Infant Health”
G. Wesley Bugg, JD, LLM & Carl Route, CLC
Training and Education
Advocacy and Policy
Birth & Breastfeeding Innovation
The goal of Reaching Our Brothers Everywhere is to provide men with culturally appropriate information and resources that allow them to more fully understand the dilemma of breastfeeding and birth disparities in order to impact maternal and infant mortality—especially in minority communities where the disparities are more prominent. It is well-known that communities of color have been historically resource deprived when it comes to engagement in the process of eliminating disparities. We intend to alleviate misinformation in these communities so that fathers, brothers, uncles, mentors, pastors and community leaders have culturally competent language to understand and share the importance of breastfeeding and birth equity and are able to communicate this information and knowledge to others in the community.
Learning Objectives:
- Identify the benefit and value of breastfeeding from a male perspective.
- Locate organizations and individuals that promote breastfeeding, safe sleep and fatherhood.
- Demonstrate a knowledge of the landscape maternal and child health required to address and serve the needs of clients.
“The Voices of Doulas in Impacting Implicit Bias”
Gwendolyn Norman, BSN, MPH, PhD
Advocacy and Policy
Background: Doula care is receiving increased attention as an intervention to decrease disparities and improve health outcomes for women of color. As part of a wider study incorporating voices of obstetrical care providers and Black mothers to develop strategies for mitigating impacts of implicit bias, the objective of this analysis was to describe how doulas’ experiences might impact change.
Methods: An interview guide, developed in collaboration with the ECHO cohort in Atlanta, GA, was used to conduct one-hour audio- and video-recorded interviews with four doulas in Detroit, MI. Each certified doula was an African American woman, experienced in supporting birthing families. Interviews were analyzed utilizing MAXQDA software.
Results: Several themes emerged. First, while advocating for respectful care and the wishes of their clients, the doulas identified breastfeeding support as a consistent area of disparities in care, rationing of treatment options, and implicit bias. Second, although doulas saw their work as part of a sacred mission, they shared the frustration of pay inequities, and lack of insurance and other sustainable funding support for the dedicated professional services they provided to families. Third, they strongly agreed that extensive education about the role and benefits of doula care was important for both healthcare providers and the community at large to improve utilization and policy support for doula services. Fourth, inequities in care cannot be remedied with implicit bias training or the presence of doulas alone.
Conclusions: Implicit bias continues to impact the birth experience for African American families. Strong representation by those who reflect the communities they serve is an essential factor in assuring long-term improvements in maternal health outcomes.
Learning Objectives:
- Participants will describe how doula care can mitigate the impact of implicit bias
- Participants will describe the historical inequities, structural racism, and abiding stressors impacting African American birthing persons that require multifocal interventions (beyond implicit bias training) to improve the birthing experience.
- Participants will list at least two examples of implicit bias that impact breastfeeding success
“Project Detroit: Voices for Life”
Princella Graham, BA, CPC; Ally Rooker, MPH; Yolanda R. Hill-Ashford, MSW; Shirley Gray, MSW; Kiddada Green, M.A.T.
Birth & Breastfeeding Innovation
Merck for Mothers, Safer Childbirth Cities (M4M SCC) is a national program developed to reduce the disproportionate rates of perinatal deaths in Black and Brown birthing women. A 3-year M4M SCC grant to Detroit was made to the Southeast Michigan Perinatal Quality Improvement Coalition (SEMPQIC) in 2021. Health equity is a priority component of all aspects of SEMPQIC’s work with improvement as a goal. The overall goal of SEMPQIC is to improve maternal mortality outcomes for Black and Brown women in Detroit.
With the 3-year M4M SCC grant to Detroit, SEMPQIC assembled a collaboration of four community partners beginning February 2021, to develop Project Detroit: Voices for Life” (PD:VFL). PD:VFL is a four-prong, multi-stakeholder approach to reducing maternal mortality utilizing existing successful maternal health structures and resources in Detroit.
Learning Objectives:
- Explain information about each of the four components of the Merck for Mother, Project Detroit: Voices for Life: 1) Detroit Health Department (DHD) – Maternal Mortality/Vitality Review Board, identifying opportunities to increase perinatal vitality by reviewing maternal deaths; 2) Henry Ford Health – Unconscious Bias training for women’s health professionals to increase equitable and respectful care; 3) Black Mothers Breastfeeding Association (BMBFA) – Doula recruitment, training and facilitating employment to increase access for Black and Brown women to further promote perinatal vitality; 4) DHD SisterFriends, Focus: Hope and BMBFA – 100 Voices Storytelling Training to empower the voices of Black and Brown birthing women through telling their birth stories via a media campaign to encourage advocacy for respectful and equitable perinatal care.
- Discuss innovations to improve maternal health in the Greater Detroit area.
- Demonstrate methods of including equity and improving respectful care.
“The Try-fecta: Holistic Healing”
Kerry-Ann Dixon, MSN, RN; Tierra Emerson, LMSW, CCM; Lorenda Lewis, RN, CLC, Full Circle Doula
Direct Service
Advocacy and Policy
Birth & Breastfeeding Innovation
Mental health and well-being is an important part of the pregnancy and postpartum period. There has been significant research highlighting the fact that Black women are disproportionately impacted by perinatal and postnatal mood and anxiety disorders but are half as likely to receive treatment. In Michigan, there is a growing crisis in maternal and newborn health. Black women are four times more likely to die because of preventable causes in childbirth than white women. These inequities that Black and Brown people face in healthcare date back to slavery. Dr. J. Marion Sims was a doctor who performed experiments on unanesthetized enslaved women without their consent. Sims believed black women were less intelligent than white women. He also felt that black women didn’t feel pain like other humans and therefore were only useful in providing him with data he could use for his research.
Advocating for self can be challenging for some families that may struggle to find their voice. The threat of the father being kicked out of the delivery room for advocating for standards of care. The mom must return to work and there are restrictions in place that hinder her ability to breastfeed her baby. Being confronted with such obstacles can affect mental health and we must stand with Black families.
Learning Objectives:
- List the importance of recognizing and addressing mental health symptoms during the pregnancy and postpartum period.
- Explain the principles of African Traditions by mothering the mother.
- Describe how advocacy is connected to revenue stream and how to advocate to get results.
“Breastfeeding Resiliency for Young Parents”
Direct Service
Parents of all ages deserve to have equitable access to achieve the best maternal health outcomes for their family. Unfortunately, young parents in marginalized communities tend to have exacerbated inequities due to lack of social support systems, resources, and knowledge surrounding birthing and parenting experiences. With breastfeeding being one of the most beneficial ways to feed, bond, and protect mom and baby from infant and/or maternal mortality, this presentation supports birth workers’ knowledge by introducing a breastfeeding resiliency theory to properly equip and empower young parents with adequate breastfeeding support for them to be successful in their own maternal health outcomes.
Learning Objectives:
- Describe the increased statistical risks for poor maternal health outcomes for young mothers in marginalized communities.
- Examine the Walsh (2016) Family Resilience concept and its relevance to supporting the young families’ competence of breastfeeding.
- Explore best practices for equitably supporting young parents in lactation practices.
“Transforming The Doula Lens: A Look Into How Doula Care is Preventative Care”
Direct Service
Training and Education
Doulas have been transforming lives since the conception of the idea in the United States in the 1960s. For the last 60 years, healthcare has intertwined into the labor room in ways that can be viewed as harmful. Doulas have stood bedside as the black maternal mortality rate has skyrocketed at alarming rates. With the idea of having a doula alongside during your pregnancy journey becoming more accessible, I think it’s time to discuss how doula care needs to be reframed as preventative care. The addition of a support person during a vulnerable time of your life while also dealing with additional low Social Determinants Of Health has to have some benefits, right? In a study done across 6 years, the addition of doulas lowered the risk of perinatal mood disorders by over 50%. Community doulas are also lowering racial disparities within the healthcare system. In January of 2023, California added doula services as a preventive care for all Medicare recipients. As we advance in all facets of life, it is time to advance what it means to be a doula, what it means to be a community birth worker. In this presentation I will go deeper into the transformation of the doula lens and how to navigate this space as preventative care.
Learning Objectives:
- List the importance of community doula support and advocacy for populations with lower social determinants of health.
- Identify the need for community doula programs in low income communities for black birthing people.
- Explain why doula support is preventive care.
“Black Maternal Health: Where do we go from here??”
Direct Service
Training and Education
The roots of racism in medicine can be traced back to the 1800s, and regrettably, its influence persists even today. This presentation will delve into the distressing historical aspects, starting from the impact of the Flexner Report on HBCU medical schools to significant cases such as Dobbs v Jackson. By examining the current statistics and underlying causes, we will explore the state of Black maternal health, encompassing not only pregnancy-related issues but also gynecologic care, particularly focusing on the prevalence of uterine fibroids. Additionally, various program examples will be provided to demonstrate effective strategies in reducing maternal mortality and morbidity.
At the end of the presentation (50 slides) will have a small Q&A to get feedback on what the community wants to be done.
Learning Objectives:
- Describe how we came to a system that has inherit health care inequities
- Understand the meaning and differences between health disparities, health inequity, and health equity
- Investigate scenarios and potential solutions to combat inequities
“Village Doulas: Ida Mae Patterson Center at Uzazi Village”
Ronnetta Thompson, MHA/ED, CLC, CHW
Direct Service
Training and Education
The Village Doulas: Ida Mae Patterson Center for Maternal and Infant Wellness at Uzazi Village will be presenting on the culturally congruent training and prenatal care they provide to the Kansas City, MO community. The presentation will shed light on the current statistics in maternal and infant health, highlighting the efforts and interventions undertaken by their doulas to address and combat these concerning trends.
Learning Objectives:
- Identify culturally congruent training programs in Missouri
- Describe the programs available at Uzazi Village
“Battling Bias: Learning from the Lived Experience to Improve Perinatal Care and Advance Health Equity: 2022 Data from IRTH App’s Digital platform”
Training and Education
Advocacy and Policy
Organizational and Programmatic Sustainability
Implicit bias has been well documented as directly linked to the Black maternal mortality crises and high rates of Black infant deaths. However, there is an underlying issue that drives Black maternal/ infant mortality; systemic racism that leads to biased care that does not support healthy pregnancy, birth and successful breastfeeding for Black women. This session will focus on discussing findings from analysis from the Irth App, a robust database of Black patient experiences of maternity and infant care. Irth (as in Birth, but without the B for bias) is the first-of-its-kind review and recommendation engine designed for Black and brown women and birthing people to find and leave reviews of prenatal, birthing, postpartum and pediatric experiences of care.
While many recent critical efforts to examine these challenges include studies to understand bias in prenatal care; providers lack robust databases of qualitative knowledge of perinatal experiences of care, that specifically examines perceptions of racism and bias and what defines respectful and dignified care to Black birthing people. Irth captures the intersectional experiences of birth at U.S. hospitals from Black women and birthing people, including lactation support, and analyzes the data to identify trends and patterns of bias to develop insights, and actionable strategies to improve perinatal care and support for Black and other families of color.
This presentation will discuss up-to-date findings from the Irth App including key national and state-wide review collection campaigns. The analysis will provide learnings and practical strategies for improving in and out of hospital maternity and newborn care for Black birthing people and help address gaps in racial disparities. Attendees will learn what constitutes an experience of bias, hear qualitative feedback, and identify key action steps to address gaps that contribute to bias in maternal/ infant care and racial disparities in breastfeeding rates
Learning Objectives:
- Explain how biased care adversely impacts maternal/ child health outcomes- Using data from Irth app’s structured survey of hospital birthing experiences specifically focusing on feedback on doctors, nurses and lactation consultants in the birthing experience.
- Identify key action steps to address gaps and challenges to equitable birth and breastfeeding experiences identified by Irth app users.
- Describe key components of a community centered approach applied to addressing racial disparities in maternal and infant care. We will show how data translates to specific experiences of bias through a sampling of qualitative feedback from survey participants.
Building Sustainable Perinatal Workforce: The Role of Salary, Support, and Supervision
Organizational and Programmatic Sustainability
The community-based doula model at HC One is an innovative replication train-the-trainer model, where community-based trainers are prepared to train community members as doulas with the HealthConnect One curriculum. This replication model is building and mentoring a large, new national cohort of community-based doulas, through its focus on salary, support, and supervision. During this session, presenters will provide an in-depth look at the HealthConnect One community-based doula model, discuss current ?HealthConnect One statewide doula initiatives and projects to scale this crucial workforce, and an opportunity for learning about the role of salary, support, and supervision in ensuring community-based doula program success and reducing burnout.
The workshop session will provide an overview of HealthConnect One’s community-based doula program history and model, share recent improvements to the model and curriculum; review current initiatives to scale the community-based doula project, with a focus on the statewide New Jersey Doula Learning Collaborative and the Rochester Doula Hub; share key strategies to ensuring salary, support, and supervision are in full effect to value doulas work; and qualitative outcomes from doulas and administrators partaking in this work and the implication for national policy and practice. The session will conclude with a facilitated Q&A session with the audience.
Learning Objectives:
- Describe an in-depth look at the HealthConnect One community-based doula model and its innovative replication train-the-trainer model.
- Describe current HealthConnect One statewide doula initiatives and projects aiming to scale the community-based doula workforce.
- Share key strategies to ensuring salary, support, and supervision are in full effect to value doulas work, reduce burnout, and build sustainability.
The WIN Network Edition: A Focus on Social Determinants of Health through WIN Network’s Home Visiting Curriculum
Courtney Latimer, M.A. & Felicia Lane
Direct Service
Detroit’s healthcare and social services systems often lack the appropriate utilization and coordination causing a fragmented system of care; the result is adverse health outcomes for many residents. In particular, Detroiters face many risks that contribute to high infant mortality rates such as lack of steady employment, adequate housing, and access to healthy, affordable food. Nearly 40% of Detroiters live in poverty and 21.4% of people under the age of 65 are uninsured (US Census Bureau). Residents also experience social isolation and other major stressors. Pregnant women living in these conditions have challenges accessing and following a prescribed healthcare regimen in turn contributing to Detroit’s high infant mortality rate at nearly 15/1000 live births.
Utilizing a Quadruple Aim approach (better health, better care, lower cost and improved equity), Women-Inspired Neighborhood (WIN) Network aims to reduce the Detroit infant mortality rate by 50% for underserved, at-risk women by leveraging the impact of community health workers (CHWs) in mitigating social determinants of health (SDoH) though an enhanced model of group prenatal care (GPC): The WIN Network Edition. This innovative approach to incorporating SDoH within GPC has been noted as the first of it’s kind in the country per the CenteringHealthcare Institute. Positive outcomes have allowed us to replicate the WIN Network Edition Enhanced GPC curriculum to several sites including UH Rainbow Ahuja Center for Women & Children in Cleveland, Ohio. We are currently working on expansion to a separate site with Henry Ford Health as well as 2 replicated sites outside of the Health System.
Learning Objectives:
- Explain the importance of focusing on SDoH through one-on-one encounters with birthing people to achieve exceptional birth and breastfeeding outcomes.
- Describe WIN Network’s enhanced model of Group Prenatal Care using the CenteringHealthcare curriculum and WIN Network’s companion home visiting guide
Breastfeeding while living with HIV
Ciarra Covin, MSHS & Dr. Elizabeth Lowenthal, MD, MSCE
Direct Service
In January 2023, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reversed its decades-old recommendations against breastfeeding for people living with HIV (PLHIV). The new guidelines promote collaborative decision making around infant feeding choices between pregnant PLHIV and their healthcare providers. Suppressive maternal antiretroviral treatment (ART) or infant daily dosing of a single antiretroviral (ARV) medication reduces transmission risk to <1% over the course of 6 months of exclusive breastfeeding. However, a small risk of transmitting HIV remains and must be balanced against the benefits of breastfeeding. In this session, Ciarra (Ci Ci) Covin, a mother who has been a survivor of HIV for more than a decade will share her experiences with infant feeding, including safely breastfeeding her daughter for 7 months. Dr. Liz Lowenthal, a pediatrician whose practice focuses on the care of children living with HIV and HIV-exposed infants, will discuss data related to HIV transmission through breastfeeding and what we know about how to minimize the risk while maximizing benefits of breastfeeding for families affected by HIV.
Learning Objectives:
- Describe how 2023 DHHS Guidelines reversed decades-old recommendations related to breastfeeding among people living with HIV.
- Identify key strategies for limiting the risk of HIV transmission through breastmilk.
- Express the importance of teamwork between a mother’s HIV treatment provider, the infant’s doctor, and parents throughout the period of breastfeeding.
“Thriving Through Healthy & Stable Housing”
Direct Service
During the session, participants will receive an overview of the services and processes implemented to promote the well-being of residents and mothers. The presenters will discuss their approach to supporting residents through Health Champions and Resident Champions programs. Furthermore, insights will be shared regarding the Choice Neighborhood Initiative, emphasizing the significance of healthy and stable housing in fostering positive birth outcomes. Ample time will be allotted for a question and answer session.
Learning Objectives:
- Describe how healthy and stable housing can lead to healthier birth outcomes.
- Explain how we connect participants to community resources and opportunities so they can thrive.
#BuildBirthDetroit: Lunch on the Land with Birth Detroit
Leseily Welch
Advocacy and Policy
Direct Service
Organizational and Programmatic Sustainability
Come enjoy lunch on the land and hear from the Birth Detroit team and Birth Detroit families about the spirit of care Birth Detroit provides and plans for Detroit’s first community birth center.
Learning Objectives:
- Describe Birth Detroit’s neighborhood based midwifery-led perinatal health practice and the services provided.
- Identify two ways to support building Birth Detroit Birth Center.
- Explain the system and policy changes needed to ensure birth center sustainability.
SisterFriends Detroit
The Great Divine Center
Organizational and Programmatic Sustainability
Participants will be provided an overview on the services and programs we offer at The Great Divine Center and Goddess Great. Participants will learn about the underserved populations we offer our services to. We will share some highlights and success stories. We will provide participants with our mission and approach to improving maternal and infant health mortality rates. We will educate our participants on our goal to help families thrive in our community. We will leave time for Q & A.
Learning Objectives
- Educate participants on Hypnobirthing and the benefits to have a safer, calm and natural birth
- Describe/ Explain the agency success stories and struggles for areas of improvement to further our mission and get the support needed to help the community
Black Mothers’ Breastfeeding Association – About BMBFA
Organizational and Programmatic Sustainability
Kiddada Green, MAT & Isha Johnson
Black Mothers Breastfeeding Association’s (BMBFA) mission is to reduce racial inequities to breastfeeding support for Black families. BMBFA optimizes the first food experience byway of direct service, training and education, advocacy and maternal child health technology. Learn how BMBFA’s programs and services lead to more satisfying breastfeeding outcomes.
Learning Objectives:
- List 2 ways that BMBFA amplifies community voice to positively impact Black breastfeeding rates.
- Explain how BMBFA works collaboratively with WIC, community-based organizations, and health systems to strengthen systems to overcome historical, societal and social barriers to breastfeeding success.
- List 3 ways that BMBFA’s perinatal services support increased breastfeeding for Black families.