Search Results: MCHLine

Annotation: In this podcast episode, host Christie Allen sits down with Dr. Andrea Greiner, a maternal-fetal medicine specialist at the University of Iowa, to discuss the unique challenges of rural maternity care. Dr. Greiner shares her experiences working at a perinatal regional center, offering insight into how larger facilities can support rural hospitals and providers. Together, they explore the importance of individualized care, the complexities of coordinating care across diverse healthcare settings, and the logistical hurdles rural patients face. The episode is part of the AIM for Safer Birth series of podcasts that dive deeper into the rising severe maternal morbidity and maternal mortality rates in the United States through a data-driven, quality improvement lens.

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Keywords: Access to health care, Barriers, Coordination, History, Maternal health, Perinatal health, Regional factors, Regional medical centers, Rural health, Safety

Annotation: In this episode of the AIM for Safer Birth podcast series, host Christie Allen continues her conversation with Dr. Tina Pattara-Lau, Maternal and Child Health Consultant at the Indian Health Service (IHS) as they explore the ongoing transformation of maternal health care within rural communities. Dr. Pattara-Lau delves deeper into the impact of culturally responsive care, the integration of traditional practices, and the expansion of telehealth services. They further discuss the strides being made in overcoming access barriers, fostering community trust, and implementing innovative care models tailored to the unique needs of American Indian/Alaska Native populations. The AIM for Safer Birth series dives deeper into the rising severe maternal morbidity and maternal mortality rates in the United States through a data-driven, quality improvement lens.

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Keywords: Alaska natives, American Indians, Barriers, Community participation, Cultural sensitivity, Health care access, Initiatives, Model programs, Rural health

Annotation: Podcast host Christie Allen delves into the unique challenges and innovative solutions in rural and Indigenous maternal health care with Dr. Tina Pattara-Lau, Maternal and Child Health Consultant at the Indian Health Service (IHS). Dr. Pattara-Lau shares her experiences and insights on improving patient access to quality care through culturally safe practices, partnerships, and innovative models such as telehealth and community-based care. They discuss the systemic barriers, the importance of culturally safe practices, and the role of community partnerships in enhancing care for American Indian/Alaska Native populations, emphasizing the need for continuous quality improvement and sensitivity to cultural and traditional practices. This episode is part of the AIM series of podcasts that dive deeper into the rising severe maternal morbidity and maternal mortality rates in the United States through a data-driven, quality improvement lens.

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Keywords: Alaska natives, American Indians, Barriers, Community participation, Cultural sensitivity, Health care access, Initiatives, Model programs, Rural health

Annotation: In this season finale of AIM for Safer Birth 2024 podcast series, host Christie Allen is joined by Dr. Veronica Gillispie-Bell to reflect on key themes from the season, including rural maternity care, collaborative models, and the structural barriers impacting maternal health. They discuss the realities of hospital closures, the importance of integrating community birth centers, and the critical need for sustainability in quality improvement efforts. Dr. Gillispie-Bell shares insights on bridging gaps across disciplines, tackling systemic inequities, and how to keep patients' goals at the center of care. Plus, they dive into the transformative power of data and the lessons that can guide future improvements.

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Keywords: Barriers, Collaboration, Data, Health equity, Maternal health, Model programs, Rural health, Service integration

Annotation: This scorecard examines women's health and reproductive care across all U.S. states, analyzing performance through 32 measures organized into three dimensions: health outcomes; health care quality and prevention; and coverage, access, and affordability. It reveals significant regional and racial disparities in health system performance, with northeastern states generally performing better than southeastern and southwestern states. Key findings include: Massachusetts, Vermont, and Rhode Island ranking highest overall while Mississippi, Texas, and Nevada rank lowest; maternal mortality rates being highest in Tennessee, Mississippi, and Louisiana, with rates disproportionately affecting Black and American Indian/Alaska Native women; mental health conditions representing the leading cause of preventable pregnancy-related deaths; women in states without Medicaid expansion facing higher uninsured rates and more frequently skipping care due to cost; and abortion restrictions potentially limiting future access to maternity care providers. The report highlights how state policy choices impact women's health, noting that southeastern states with abortion restrictions generally have fewer maternity care providers, higher maternal mortality, and lower screening rates.

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Keywords: , Barriers, Health disparities, Health services, Maternal health, Maternal mortality, Measures, Statistical data, Women's health

Annotation: This issue brief discusses the extension of postpartum Medicaid coverage from 60 days to 12 months following birth, which states have been able to implement since April 2022. It examines how this extension supports improved access to perinatal and postpartum care but requires complementary state actions to be fully effective. The brief highlights key challenges in postpartum care, including care fragmentation, workforce shortages, and barriers to implementation at system, community, and individual levels. It outlines four solution areas: developing comprehensive standards of care, expanding dyadic care models, increasing workforce support, and providing education and technical assistance. The document concludes with specific recommendations for funders to support implementation efforts at local, state, and national levels to improve maternal health outcomes and advance health equity.

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Keywords: Barriers, Financing, Health care reform, Initiatives, Maternal health, Medicaid, Model programs, Perinatal care, Postpartum care, Resources for professionals, patient education materials

Annotation: This issue brief examines the implementation of Medicaid/CHIP postpartum coverage extensions from 60 days to 12 months after pregnancy in five states. Based on interviews with 37 maternal health stakeholders, the authors identify key challenges and opportunities to maximize the impact of these extensions on maternal health outcomes. The report finds that while eligibility systems are functioning, limited communication about extended coverage and barriers to accessing care may reduce effectiveness. The authors recommend specific actions to improve implementation, including expanding education about extended coverage, improving quality of postpartum care, supporting continuity of care with a focus on equity, strengthening managed care organization accountability, and monitoring implementation progress. This policy analysis emphasizes that while extending coverage is necessary for improving maternal health outcomes, additional delivery system reforms are needed to address persistent racial and ethnic disparities and ensure coverage translates into access to quality care throughout the postpartum year.

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Keywords: Barriers, Children's Health Insurance Program, Health care delivery, Health care reform, Health equity, Maternal health, Medicaid, New Jersey, New Mexico, Ohio, Policy development, Postpartum care, Quality Assurance, Quality improvement, South Carolina, State initiatives, and Virginia

Annotation: This thesis presents a research study examining birthing people's experiences with the health care system during prenatal, intrapartum, and postpartum periods. The study used patient journey mapping, surveys, and interviews to capture experiences at multiple time points. Participants included six prenatal and four postpartum patients, with a focus on Black birthing people. Key findings revealed challenges with insurance access, getting questions answered between appointments, and a lack of racial concordance with health care workers. Participants also reported feeling unprepared for unexpected events, accepting care that did not align with their needs, and inconsistent mental health and intimate partner violence screenings. The thesis discusses implications for improving maternal care, such as offering low-cost services, implementing telehealth, ensuring universal screenings, and increasing workforce diversity.

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Keywords: Access to care, Barriers, Blacks, Childbirth, Health care systems, Interviews, Perinatal care, Postpartum care, Pregnant women, Prenatal care, Surveys, Toronto Canada

Annotation: This issue brief describes the public health advantages to increasing freestanding birthing centers (FSBCs); the policies that affect the opening, staffing, associated costs, and access to FSBC care; and the actions policymakers and national/state-level leaders can take to make FSBCs more accessible, thereby contributing to efforts to address the maternal health crisis.

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Keywords: Access to care, Barriers, Birthing centers, Policy

Annotation: This action brief discusses the importance of prioritizing respectful maternity care, calling attention to the need to support dignity, autonomy, and companionship in pregnancy, birth, and postpartum care. The brief highlights five anti-discriminatory action steps highlighted in the White House blueprint for addressing the maternal crisis and links to a wide variety of programs and resources aimed at improving maternal health outcomes. Statistical data related to maternal maltreatment and a description of factors affecting progress are included

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Keywords: , Barriers, Federal programs, Health care disparities, Health equity, Initiatives, Maternal health, Models, Perinatal care, Quality improvement, Racial discrimination

Annotation: [This issue brief explains how expanding the role of midwives in the U.S. health care system could reduce perinatal health disparities and help address provider workforce shortages. It provides an overview of the midwifery model of care and describes how the integration of midwifery as a standard feature of maternity care varies dramatically across states. It also examines racial/ethnic disparities in midwifery access and use and examines barriers, including inequitable Medicaid reimbursement rates that limit broad access to midwifery care.

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Keywords: Access to health, Barriers, Midwives, Perinatal care, Trends, Work force

Annotation: This brief analyzes health care coverage and eligibility of noncitizens (lawfully present and undocumented immigrants, including pregnant women and children) compared with the entire population of the United States. It compares uninsurance rates based on demographics such as age, race and ethnicity, gender, education, and employment status and also looks at the eligibility of uninsured noncitizens ffor Marketplace premium tax credits, Medicaid, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) in both Medicaid expansion and nonexpansion states.

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Keywords: Access to health care , Barriers, Health insurance, Immigrants, Migrants, Undocumented immigrants, uninsured persons

Annotation: This issue brief provides analysis of racial and ethnic disparities across selected measures of maternal and infant health, discusses the factors that drive these disparities, and provides an overview of recent efforts to address them. Statistics from federal data sets are included.

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Keywords: Barriers, Access to health care, Alaska natives, Blacks, Data, Ethnic factors, Health equity, Native Americans, Racial factors, Statistical analysis

Annotation: This online resource presents strategies to help connect families to children's mental health care; addresses gaps in the mental health workforce; and investigates how funding issues affect mental health care. It also addresses social determinants of health and how they affect mental health care; offers guidance on identifying children who need more support; and provides tools to help support healthy child development and the well-being of families.

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Keywords: Access to health care, Barriers, Child mental health, Health equity, Policy, Services for families

Annotation: This brief highlights goal 1 of the White House blueprint for addressing the maternal health crisis, which is to increase access to and coverage of comprehensive high-quality maternal health services, including behavioral health services. The brief outlines the need to strengthen risk-appropriate care in rural and urban areas; improve quality of care provided to pregnant and postpartum women with or at risk for hypertensive disorders of pregnancy; expand capacity to screen, assess, treat, and refer for maternal depression and related behavioral disorders; and Integrate behavioral health supports in community settings. Evidence-informed strategies for improvement, criteria for states to consider when developing strategies, and additional resources are included. Statistics on the percentage of women ages 15-49 with health insurance (by source of coverage); percent of Medicaid coverage by race/ethnicity; and births covered by Medicaid are also provided.

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Keywords: Access to care, Barriers, Health insurance, Initiatives, Maternal health, Medicaid, Mental health services, Perinatal care, Service integration

Annotation: This action brief describes the need to expand and diversify the perinatal workforce to meet the nation's health care needs. Compounding the limited access to maternal health care professionals, the brief highlights the lack of racial and ethnic diversity in the workforce and recommends increasing the number of nurses, health aids, midwives, doulas, lactation consultants, and community health workers to help bridge the gap. Statistics on maternity care desserts and employment of obstetricians and gynecologists by state are included The brief also describes the numerous factors that influence the lack of maternal health care practitioners in the U.S. and includes a list of innovative projects and programs aimed at addressing the issue.

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Keywords: Access to care, Barriers, Healtah equity, Initiatives, Maternal health, Perinatal care, Statistics, Work force

Annotation: This article outlines barriers to health care access, including high health care costs, transportation barriers, and implicit bias and healthcare avoidance, and describes five potential solutions: (1) Expand insurance to cover health care costs; (2) Extend telehealth services; (3) Invest in mobile clinics; (4) Educate the public about multiple health care sites; and (5) Improve cultural responsiveness.

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Keywords: Access to care, Barriers

Annotation: This report highlights the growing housing affordability crisis across the United States; describes housing difficulties experienced by North Carolina (NC) parents and their children; and presents policy recommendations based on its findings. Included is a description of themes that emerged during focus groups with NC professionals serving families and interviews with parents.

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Keywords: Barriers, Child health, Families, Homelessness, Housing, Policy development, Socioeconomic factors, State initiatives

Annotation: This research brief provides information on Indigenous Peoples in the United States and U.S. territories, including geographic distribution, overall demographics, and trends in education, health, and well-being. It discusses the impact that colonization and Federal Indian Law has had on Indigenous children, youth, and families and recommends strategies that can be implemented at the local, state, and federal levels to improve health outcomes. The brief is intended for those who engage with and/or conduct or fund research, evaluation, or technical assistance focusing on Indigenous populations..

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Keywords: Alaska natives, American Indians, Cultural barriers, Cultural factors, Health equity, History, Initiatives, Legislation, Litigation, Pacific islanders, Policy, Statutes, Trends

Annotation: This issue brief provides an overview of the structural and systemic factors contributing to the maternal health crisis in the United States. It outlines the White House Blueprint's five major goals and presents data showing significant racial, ethnic, geographic, and socioeconomic disparities in maternal health outcomes. The document examines key challenges including implicit bias, barriers for people with disabilities, limited healthcare access in rural areas, provider shortages, and socioeconomic factors. It also introduces the Restoring Our Own Through Transformation (ROOTT) Framework for addressing maternal health inequities and details evidence-based resources and strategies for implementing solutions at state and local levels.

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Keywords: Access to care, Barriers, Health care disparities, Health equity, Implicit bias, Maternal health, Population surveillance, Racial factors, Sociocultural factors