Have you heard of something called “centering pregnancy?” It’s a practice that’s been around since the 1990’s, and it is a way for expectant mothers to have support from health care professionals and other pregnant moms as they prepare for the moment that they deliver their newborn.
Granville Vance Public Health offers Centering Pregnancy through its clinics and GVPH Director Lisa Harrison said it’s something that’s been blazing trails across rural areas in the U.S. when it comes to maternal health.
“You have to be accredited as an agency to provide centering pregnancy,” Harrison said on Tuesday’s TownTalk. It’s designed for women with low- to moderate-risk pregnancies and it can help reduce the risk of health issues like high blood pressure and gestational diabetes, among other things.
“It’s exciting work,” she said, to provide an environment where women can learn and come together in a group setting. Women who participate in the program get one-on-one time with health care professionals, but they also join in small-group sessions where they can ask questions and learn from each other.
“It empowers women to be actively involved in their own health care decision-making,” she noted.
The Centering pregnancy program does not take the place of prenatal care that women receive elsewhere, and Harrison said it’s designed to complement the care that women receive from their own providers.
Given the health disparities that exist, especially among underserved populations, Harrison said this program offered by the health department is just one intervention to address maternal and infant mortality.
“It’s a way to set mom and baby up for the best outcomes,” she said.
In addition to the small group sessions during pregnancy, GVPH nurses also make home visits once mom and her newborn are home from the hospital. This service offers support to make sure mom and baby have the resources they need, and can connect them to additional resources to help them survive and thrive.
Harrison is no stranger to identifying best practices to support maternal and infant health. In fact, she and a colleague have recently written a chapter on this very topic for a book titled The Practical Playbook III. The first edition was published in 2019, and since then, it has become widely used among public health professionals.
When it comes to improving outcomes for maternal and infant health, it’s important for communities and providers to know what it takes – the policies and practices put in place – to support maternal health, she explained.
Community collaboration is “a critical piece of the safety net,” Harrison said.
To learn more, visit https://www.gvph.org/clinic/maternal-health-clinic/.
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