MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. ( DC News Now ) — The Maryland Department of Health recognized Maternal Health Awareness Day with an announcement of more than $200,000 in new grant money to expand CenteringPregnancy sites.
CenteringPregnancy blends traditional prenatal checkups with group discussions and peer support. The nearly $278,500 funding would help expand the program.
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Elizabeth Kromm is the director of Prevention and Health Promotion Administration for the Maryland Department of Health.
“We’ve done a really good job of this on the postpartum side,” she said. “This is now taking it to the prenatal side and taking advantage of that community piece. This CenteringPregnancy model has been shown to have significant benefits in terms of positive birth outcomes.”
Black women face disproportionately adverse birth and pregnancy outcomes, according to the National Institutes of Health.
Sybil Cooper, SMILE Nurse Case Manager for the African American Health Program in Montgomery County, said one of her clients enjoyed her visits with CenteringPregnancy.