One of the pregnant women participating in the program
Jorge Cruz of JRMC
Press Release – Dec. 18, 2013
PERTH AMBOY – Jewish Renaissance Medical Center (JRMC) has launched group prenatal care services as an option for all pregnant women. The group model of prenatal care would include a new “STRONG START Centering Pregnancy®” initiative for Medicaid eligible pregnant patients as well. Representatives from the US Department of Health Resources & Services Administration (DHHS), the US Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS), the NJ Primary Care Association (NJPCA) and Central Jersey Family Health Consortium (CJFHC) attended to emphasize the important contributions of this new initiative.
Some of the participants
“Strong Start” is an innovative model that enhances the prenatal care experience through regular group meetings to discuss pregnancy, childbirth and child care topics to promote healthy deliveries and healthy newborns according to The Center for Medic-aid and Medicare. DHHS designed Strong Start to improve outcomes for newborns and pregnant women and to reduce pre-term birth. This initiative builds on decades of work by organizations like American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), the March of Dimes, the National Partnership for Women and Families, the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine, and Childbirth Connection.
“On a national level, we have plateaued with the numbers on infant mortality, “ said Shirley A. Smith, RN, MS, Maternal and Child Nurse Consultant for Region II of DHHS. “We need strategies to keep driving that number down. Through Centering, we engage the mom early one. This is a college course in prenatal self- care tools. Where better can this occur than in community-based health care centers where people can receive care from birth to end of life? “
Frank Winter, Partnership Management at the CMS New York regional office, added, “Through this program, through the Affordable Care Act (ACA), we have to make our nation’s infant mortality rate a thing of the past. “It can get lost in some of the reporting, but supporting models of care like Strong Start is a big part of what the ACA is all about”.”
With assistance from Central Jersey Family Health Consortium, in partnership with the New Jersey Primary Care Association and a grant from the Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services Innovation Center (US DHHS), JRMC STRONG START for Mothers and Newborns Centering Pregnancy® group is now an enhanced prenatal care option for pregnant women. Women may receive their prenatal care in groups of 8-12 women with similar due dates. Each group session, which lasts 90 minutes to two hours, begins with a private physical assessment of each woman. After some time for snacks and socializing, the group will discuss topics important to the participants. Women have more quality time with their provider to discuss their pregnancy, an opportunity to actively participate in health decisions and have fun.
Benefits that make the Strong Start program stand out include:
- Pregnant women know when all their appointments are scheduled and never wait to be seen
- Spend quality time with their health provider
- They discuss health concerns and expectations in a supportive setting.
- Enjoy healthy snacks and refreshments
Katherine Grant-Davis, President and CEO of NJPCA, adds, “In 2012, only 6.0% of babies born under the care of NJ FQHC providers, had very low of low birth weights compared to 7.5% in 2011. There is no question that the model of engaging women in large OB waiting rooms such as the one at Jewish Renaissance is the name of the game for improved outcomes.”
Elective deliveries before 39 weeks increase the risk of significant complications for both the mother and the baby, as well as long-term health problems. Strong Start’s goals and focus were identified with the help of experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Institutes of Health (NIH), ACF and Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Babies born prematurely are a growing public health problem with significant consequences for families and an estimated cost to society of at least $26 billion each year. Each year, this is more than half a million infants in the United States, a number that has grown by 36 percent over the last 20 years.
