|
The Benefits of Doulas:
New Resources from CSSP and ICS
| |
Doulas offer crucial support to new moms. | |
"2.2 million American women live in maternity care deserts, with no hospital or birth center with obstetric care, or obstetric providers." | |
|
Several resources have recently been released by ICS and our partners, regarding the benefits of doula support for mothers and babies.
Doulas contribute to a number of positive outcomes during and after childbirth. They provide crucial emotional support and advocacy during childbirth, and lead to a number of positive birth outcomes including:
- Lower rate of C-sections
- Shorter labors
- Fewer birth complications
- Better childbirth experience for mothers
However, access to maternal care, particularly in rural areas and for families of color, is a tremendous challenge.
Nurture Connection, an initiative of The Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP), recently published a report titled "Community-Based Doulas and Early Relational Health: The Role of Public Policy and Financing." This paper focuses on how policy change can help support community-based doulas' early relational health work.
Read the report at the link below, and learn more about our work in partnership with CSSP on the topic of early relational health here.
| |
|
In addition, ICS recently co-hosted a webinar with representatives from The South Carolina Center for Rural and Primary Healthcare and the doula-led BEE Collective, to discuss the newly-published ICS paper that reviews the challenges and opportunities for expanding access to doulas in rural communities, in order to support healthy moms and babies. Community-based doulas are particularly valuable for Black mothers in rural communities, who face compounding challenges in prenatal health.
Read our resources below to learn more about the challenges and opportunities of expanding access to doulas.
| |
|
NPR Features ICS Partner Family Connects:
Nurse Home Visiting in Oregon
| |
A new family in Oregon receives newborn education as part of their nurse home visit. | |
|
NPR recently highlighted the work by Family Connects to introduce nurse home visiting across the state of Oregon, to provide crucial support and education for new families. Family Connects offers multiple free home visits from a trained nurse, to any family in Oregon, within their baby's first weeks of life.
ICS partners with Family Connects as part of our work in the Hello Family Initiative, a network of support services that serves new families and babies in Spartanburg, SC.
Learn more about ICS's work with Family Connects and Hello Family.
| |
|
ICS Visits the Aloha State
for ECDHS Initiative
| |
|
"One Big Doable Thing":
Upcoming Webinar from ECDHS
| |
|
ICS is partnering with ZERO TO THREE, American Academy of Pediatrics, and other leading early childhood organizations on the development of the Early Childhood Development Health Systems (ECDHS) Evidence to Impact Center.
Join the Early Childhood Developmental Health Systems: Evidence to Impact Center (ECDHS) on Tuesday, September 10, 1:30-3 PM EDT, for the webinar, “One Big Doable Thing! Elevating Comprehensive Developmental Promotion and Preventive Services With the Family-Engaged Well Visit Planner Approach.”
Promoting the healthy development and flourishing of young children by fostering early relational health is critical for comprehensive well-child services. Despite long-standing recommendations for comprehensive early developmental promotion and prevention services, gaps in access and quality are significant.
Presenters will share how to leverage existing system strengths and implement the Cycle of Engagement Well Visit Planner, which is designed to advance “through any door” health promotion and prevention services. Participants will learn about child flourishing and available data to inform and spark state and local partnerships. They will also hear about the practical application of the Well Visit Planner in a community health center setting. Presenters include:
This webinar is for family leaders, early child health professionals and system leaders, and community-based partners working to foster early relational health and child and family flourishing.
| |
Spotlight: ICS Policy & Advocacy | |
|
ICS team members Deborah DePaoli and Citlaly Rojo with Small Impressions
Director LaVonda Paul.
| |
Danielle Gibbs and Meghan McCully at the Small Impressions Early Childhood Development Center. | |
|
Staff of Senator Visit ICS Partner
Staff of Senator Tim Scott visited ICS partner organization Small Impressions Child Development Center this week. Afterward, they shared with the center that the visit was a great way to "see the work of early childhood care firsthand and the federal programs that support this work. You are making a difference in so many lives!"
The center's owner, LaVonda Paul, is very engaged in advocacy activities with ICS, including the Early Childhood Common Agenda. The ECCA is a coalition of hundreds of community advocates dedicated to improving outcomes for young children by making policy recommendations that support families. The ECCA has seen significant wins at the South Carolina State House, including 4K expansion, Earned Income Tax Credit, and more.
| |
|
Childcare for Parents with Non-Traditional Work Schedules
ICS is conducting a childcare landscape analysis which has revealed that childcare need is particularly critical for “non-traditional hour” care, to support parents who work outside of the “typical” 9-to-5 schedule (including health care, manufacturing, hospitality and more). For example, in Greenville County SC, around 3,770 children under 5 have one or both parents who work on weekends, yet there are never more than 150 licensed and registered child care slots offered during the weekend. As next steps, ICS will map out need vs. availability to help determine future geographic focus to address this need.
Learn more about how to support the child care workforce in our resource.
| |
|
Hello Family
We are now 2.5 years into the Hello Family Initiative and have received very exciting data from the first full calendar year after services were fully implemented. Hello Family's network of support services for young families is leading to a sea-change in community-wide measures, including a 30% reduction in child maltreatment for children under 8, 25% reduction in emergency medical needs for infants, and improvements on a range of other early health outcomes. We are also working to expand the impact among several additional communities across the country.
| |
|
ICS works on behalf of children from prenatal to age 8.
You can support our work by helping to
fund our research and advocacy.
| | | | |
