State Maternal Health Innovation Support and Implementation Program - • Address: 308 Congress St, Fl 5, Boston, MA 02210 • Project Director: Stacey Penny • Phone Numbers: 617-391-2700 (voice), 617-391-2743 (fax) • Email: spenny@nichq.org • Website: www.nichq.org • List all grant program funds requested in the application: $15,000,000 over 5 years The rates of maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity (SMM) in the U.S. are alarmingly high, and significant disparities by race and ethnicity exist. To address this problem, states and communities require responsive services that facilitate access to quality health care and community supports; accurate maternal health data and robust evaluation processes; and innovative, equitable, and population/community-specific interventions. In response to this need, HRSA funds several maternal health initiatives, including the State Maternal Health Innovation (State MHI) program. The Maternal Health Training and Resource Center (MHTRC) will provide capacity building assistance (CBA), training, and technical assistance (TTA) to State MHI and other HRSA MCHB award recipients. The National Institute for Children’s Health Quality (NICHQ) will lead the MHTRC in collaboration with key partner the Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs, and other core partners the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, Reproductive Health Impact, and HealthConnect One (MHTRC Collaborative). To ensure community voices are embedded in MHTRC efforts, a community-centered approach will be employed to support the innovative initiatives undertaken by State MHI recipients to improve maternal health outcomes for marginalized and medically underserved populations. The MHTRC Collaborative will work closely with a Maternal Health Action Alliance (MHAA) whose membership will represent diverse partners and experts including government agencies and national and regional organizations, community-based organizations, and national equity experts, including Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC)-led organizations. The MHAA will advise on TTA offerings, including ensuring they are culturally sensitive, relevant, and tailored to address the needs of communities; provide input on resources and tools for grantees; and maintain knowledge sharing among the group to drive mutually beneficial partnerships. Specifically, the MHTRC will: • Gather input from grantees, HRSA, and experts to ensure that MHTRC support is relevant to and reflective of the needs of the communities served by the grantees, support the uptake of evidence-based strategies, and target structural barriers and elements that drive adverse maternal health outcomes; • Identify the best mechanisms to fulfill grantees’ needs from various innovative TTA formats including both individualized TA (e.g., consultation with a subject matter expert) and group opportunities (e.g., webinars, Communities of Practice, mentorship program); • Develop and implement TTA offerings in partnership with subject matter experts; • Conduct an Environmental Scan and develop and deliver comprehensive CBA based on the results; • Support and attend grantee site visits; • Lift up and widely disseminate information about MHTRC offerings and grantees’ successes through various channels for grantees and external parties (including via the MHTRC National Resource Center website, social media, and conferences); • Conduct policy analysis to examine and engage policies affecting maternal mortality, SMM, maternal health, and birth equity and support State MHI recipients and the broader maternal and child health workforce skills to engage in the policymaking process. A program evaluation will focus on evaluating methods to facilitate continuous cycles of improvement and assessing how to enhance success throughout the project; and a performance outcomes evaluation will focus on the extent to which project objectives and process measures are met.
