A State Policy Brief from the National University-Based Collaborative on Justice-Involved Women & Children (JIWC) March 2024 Executive Summary: No federal statutes cover prenatal nutrition for incarcerated pregnant people and fewer than one-third of U.S. states have passed laws requiring health-promoting nutrition policies for pregnant people who are incarcerated. Of the 16 states that have […]
Author: UMN_MCHTraining
State Laws on Substance Use Treatment for Incarcerated Pregnant and Postpartum People
A State Policy Brief from the National University-Based Collaborative on Justice-Involved Women & Children (JIWC) December 2023 Executive Summary: In the U.S., over 60% of incarcerated pregnant people are in custody for non-violent drug offenses. Only 7 states had statutes related to treatment of substance use disorders in pregnant incarcerated populations despite the evidence that […]
Student Spotlight: How is an Interest in Storytelling and Data Visualization Inspiring the Direction of Ruth Arévalo’s Masters Program?
#UMNMCH student Ruth Arévalo (MPH 2024) wrote this reflection on how community work, nursing career, and deployment have contributed to a career in Maternal and Child Health (MCH). Understanding the Impacts of COVID-19 on Childhood Immunization Acquisition In 2022 I began my deployment with Hennepin County Public Health (HCPH) as a Community Health Assessment and Project […]
Want to Expand Your MCH Education? Opportunities are Available with MCH Navigator
The MCH Navigator has created the Learning Program resource as they recognize that there is no “one-size-fits-all” approach to learning, so it offers a growing selection of learning programs to match participants’ educational needs and time requirements. Participants have access to both (1) focused and fast micro-learning (and micro-reflection) programs for when they need to […]
What are Perinatal Quality Collaboratives?
Perinatal Quality Collaboratives (PQCs) are state or multistate networks of teams working to improve the quality of care for mothers and babies. PQC members identify healthcare processes that need to be improved and use the best available methods to make changes as quickly as possible. PQCs have contributed to Want to learn more about PQCs? […]
JIWC Community Spotlight: Alicia Roach
Alicia Roach, Doula and Certified Breastfeeding Educator, Birthing with Dignity Doula Services Alicia Roach is a doula and certified breastfeeding educator based in Portland, Oregon. She promotes safe, supportive, and empowering birthing experiences for her clients. Alicia was formerly incarcerated while pregnant and her firsthand experience inspired her to testify for a bill establishing a […]
JIWC Community Spotlight: The Lotus Alliance
The Lotus Alliance is a prison doula project in Columbia, South Carolina. The project’s co-directors, Kaylin Smith and Sadie Whitehead, work in coalition with other doulas, medical students and doctors to provide support in the Camille Graham Correctional Institution throughout pregnancy, labor and postpartum. Sadie and Kaylin were instrumental in pushing forward an anti-shackling bill […]
Abortion Access for Incarcerated People in the U.S.
A State Policy Brief from the National University-Based Collaborative on Justice-Involved Women & Children (JIWC) May 2023 Download PDF Executive Summary: Without the constitutional protection of abortion, access is entirely dependent on state laws. Before Roe was overturned, only 4 U.S. states had laws on abortion for incarcerated people in the U.S. In the last […]
Student Spotlight: How did Mollie Kohler’s Deployment Highlight the Connection Between Social Support and Mental Well-being In the Postpartum Period?
#UMNMCH student Mollie Kohler, she/her wrote this reflection on how her experience as a social worker led her to the MCH program and prepared her for a deployment with the UMN Extension Center for Family Development, where she worked on a project to improve culturally relevant postpartum social support and maternal well-being. Wellness Intern Deployment […]
HEAR HER Campaign
CDC’s Division of Reproductive Health is committed to healthy pregnancies and deliveries for every woman. The Hear Her campaign supports CDC’s efforts to prevent pregnancy-related deaths by sharing potentially life-saving messages about urgent warning signs. Women know their bodies better than anyone and can often tell when something doesn’t feel right. The campaign seeks to […]
Breastfeeding Support for Incarcerated People in the U.S.
A State Policy Brief from the national JIWC April 2023
Student Spotlight: How Has Monica Marcial Gutierrez’s position as a WIC Nutritionist and her Student Group Leadership Role Enriched Her MCH Interests?
#UMNMCH student Monica Marcial Gutierrez, MPH 2024, wrote this reflection on how her experiences as a WIC nutritionist inspired her to pursue her Master’s in MCH and to become an executive board member of the Maternal and Child Health Student Interest Group (MCHSIG). Background I began to consider a career in public health after joining […]
AIM’s Patient Safety Bundles
The Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health (AIM) has created multiple Patient Safety Bundles to improve the process of care and patient outcomes related to preventable severe maternal morbidity and mortality in the United States. The Patient Safety Bundles “are clinical condition-specific and follow an evidence-based, 5R structure, that when performed collectively and reliably have […]
Student Spotlight: How Did a Foreign Policy Student Become Part of the UMN MCH Master’s Program?
#UMNMCH student Julieta Barbiero wrote this reflection on her path to public health and her work with the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH). What was your path to the UMN MCH Program? I was not always in the public health field. I received my bachelor’s degree in international studies from American University in Washington, D.C. […]