Imperative 1
Ensuring Health Care and Social Services are Accessible
Innovation and equity in health care and social services is critical to improving opportunities for children in need.
Henry Ford Health’s Women-Inspired Neighborhood (WIN) Network adopted this enhanced model of group prenatal care.
83% of SisterFriends program participants delivered full-term. WIN Network Detroit reports a 10.3% decrease in low birth weight babies.
We are increasing the number of primary care providers serving pregnant women, birthing people, and families with respectful care.
The racial disparity in our communities also affects the type and quality of healthcare Detroit families and children receive. Therefore, it's critical to promote healthy development and well-being, starting at conception up to age eight.
We are driving equity in healthcare and health outcomes, centered on black, expectant mothers, birthing people, children 0-8, and families to ensure they receive the respectful care they deserve. Our work also includes connecting parents and families to health, social and educational supports to help them thrive.
Our steering committee, known as the Detroit Maternal, Child and Family Health Alliance (DMCFHA), comprises 30+ organizations, including healthcare, government, and community-based organizations, working together to connect healthcare and social services agencies, share information and evaluate results.
Our work guarantees every pregnant person along with their families, and children from birth to age eight have equitable opportunities to ensure sufficiency, health, well-being, safety, and preparedness to thrive.
Lead Organizations
Why Now?
Structural barriers, racial disparities and fractured systems can lead to poor health in early childhood and inequitable treatment in healthcare. We are focused on expecting mothers in Detroit receiving adequate and respectful prenatal care, universal screening and intersystem connection to resources. It’s critical for us to implement solutions now that improve birth outcomes for Detroit mothers and babies.
The Latest
Respectful Care Survey
Henry Ford Health has leveraged the Respectful Maternity Care (RMC) approach, introduced by the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN), to eliminate the mistreatment of women and improve maternal health.
In assessing respectful care, Henry Ford Health measures the percentage of patients reporting respectful treatment by their providers. Other methods include using a Quality of Prenatal Care questionnaire to measure and track maternal and infant health outcomes. The findings will be shared with the DMCFHA community to replicate the model throughout the City of Detroit.
Implicit Bias Training
We are also examining policy changes, communication standards, and protocols as additional ways to address bias and inequities in women’s health by forming workgroups to focus on bias.
Our goal is to expand bias training across all Detroit hospital systems and reach more health care providers through the Safer Childbirth Cities program led by Southeast Michigan Perinatal Quality Improvement Coalition (SEMPQIC).
While progress is being made, more work is needed. You can join our Detroit Infant Mortality Task Force to help us address the social determinants of health, including food security, transportation, housing, and childcare.
Dig Deeper
What is Group Prenatal Care (GPC)?
The traditional model of prenatal care was to meet with your provider for approximately 10-15 minutes, totaling about two hours of care throughout the entire pregnancy.
GPC is an alternative model that was developed where pregnant moms due to deliver around the same time meet regularly throughout their pregnancy for prenatal care and have more time to address breastfeeding, nutrition, contraception, mental health, or social needs with their provider.
With GPC, participants experience no wait times for appointments and have more time to address questions and concerns about pregnancy, birth, infant care, and more.
Henry Ford Health System
Detroit Health Department
WIN Network
SisterFriends