Alameda County Maternal, Paternal, Child, Adolescent Health (MPCAH) Birth Worker Capacity Building ProjectOverview
Alameda County Maternal, Paternal, Child, Adolescent Health (MPCAH) uses a community-centered and co-designed approach that includes community members who both provide and/or receive services. Community members in the collaboration offer ongoing feedback during program planning, implementation of services, quality improvement activities, and evaluation. MPCAH’s robust programming and strong partnerships uniquely position it to significantly expand and lead efforts to advance perinatal and reproductive equity. The collaborative’s plan is to broaden the current scope of Alameda County’s Doula Services Program by partnering with local doulas and collectives to provide a culturally-competent doula workforce, fund administrative and capacity-building support to community partners, and facilitate the onboarding of doulas offering services to Medi-Cal recipients. The Hellman Collaborative Change Initiative GROWTH grant will enable MPCAH to increase the doula workforce by 25% to support birthing families experiencing health disparities in Alameda County. The goal of the project is to increase healthy births, healthcare access, community engagement, and improve the economic security of participating doulas. The Collaboration
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The Problem
In Alameda County, birthing people from under-resourced communities experience significantly worse health outcomes than the general population. According to hospital data, Black birthing people in Alameda County have a preterm birth rate of 10.1 per 1,000 births and Pacific Islanders have the highest preterm birth rate of 13.2 per 1,000 births; Pacific Islander birthing people also have the highest fetal death rate of 14.6 per 1,000 births. The Pacific Islander community in Alameda County has similar health outcomes to the Black population, but reporting often groups them in the larger Asian population, which diminishes their unique experience. Many of these birthing people lack translated resources in their native language and culturally competent health advocates, such as doulas. Alameda County’s LGBTQIA+ families are also largely underrepresented in research and programs to improve birth outcomes for under-resourced communities. “The synergy between our two organizations has resulted in impactful initiatives that address healthdisparities and empower individuals and communities. This partnership is a testament to our mutual dedication to public health and social equity. ” - Dr. Sayida Peprah-Wilson ED Diversity Uplifts.
“we commend the MPCAH Unit for its efforts to engage stakeholders from diverse backgrounds to collectively address the challenges facing birthing families in Alameda County.”- Linda Jones, ED Black Women Birthing Justice For more information, contact:
Daphina Melbourne Perinatal Equity Initiative Coordinator Alameda County Public Health Dept. [email protected] |