Maternal and Child Health

Maternal and Child Health

The goal of the Maternal and Child Health Department is to improve the health of mothers and babies by focusing on women and families most at risk for poor outcome. In recent years priority has been on reducing the infant mortality rate --particularly among blacks. Far too many babies die before their first birthday. Still more are born in poor health requiring expensive and extensive medical treatment. The Marion County Health Department has initiated several major efforts to improve birth outcomes.

Indianapolis Healthy Babies

To contact Indianapolis Healthy Babies, please call 317-221-2313

Another important element in the Maternal and Child Health effort is Indianapolis Healthy Babies (formerly the Indianapolis Campaign for Healthy Babies), a joint program of the Marion County Health Department and Wishard Health Services.

Indianapolis Healthy Start

To contact Indianapolis Healthy Start, please call 317-221-2317

Indianapolis Healthy Start is a program of the Marion County Health Department, funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration, to lower the numbers of babies who die each year in Marion County.

There are three main services that make up Indianapolis Healthy Start:

Case Management:  Similar to care coordination, Healthy Start case managers work one on one with pregnant women until the child is age 2. During this time, Healthy Start case managers help families access important medical and social resources. Case managers also help pregnant moms understand the importance of a proper diet, prenatal care, smoking cessation, breastfeeding and others. Healthy Start case managers can screen mothers for postpartum depression and link them to services if needed.

Health Education:  Have you ever had questions about feeding your baby? What about questions about child development? Healthy Start has many education classes across the city to help answer some of these questions. The classes are free and open to anyone interested in learning more:  moms, dads, aunts, grandmothers, caregivers, etc.

Outreach:  The purposes of Healthy Start outreach services are twofold. The first purpose is to raise community awareness about issues related to infant health. The Healthy Start outreach worker speaks to numerous groups on such topics as:  folic acid, family planning, breastfeeding, teen pregnancy, safe sleep and many others. The second purpose is to help pregnant women receive prenatal care and access other needed health services.

Beds and Britches, Etc. of Indianapolis (B.A.B.E.)

To contact the B.A.B.E. program coordinator, please call:317-221-3050

Beds and Britches, Etc. (B.A.B.E.) is a community-based incentive program that provides new and used clothing and supplies for pregnant women and children to age 3, with sizes newborn-4T. The B.A.B.E. program operates five stores where families can exchange coupons obtained from health care and social services providers for needed items.

Pregnant women and families with children can get items from B.A.B.E. by collecting B.A.B.E. coupons from participating coupon distributors and redeeming them for items at any B.A.B.E. store. The Marion County Health Department, Clarian Health (Methodist*IU*Riley), St. Vincent Hospitals & Health Services, Wishard Community Health Centers and St. Francis Hospitals & Health Center sponsors the B.A.B.E. Program.

Store locations:

Forest Manor Community Health Center
Wishard Health Services, 3840 N. Sherman Dr., 547-2223

Clarian Health (Methodist*IU*Riley)
1706 E. Prospect ST., 681-0750

St Vincent Hospital & Health Services
2301 N. Park Ave. (East 23rd St.entrance), 931-3045

St. Francis Hospital & Health Services
234 E. Southern (corner of Madison and Southern), 784-2223

Postpartum Early Discharge

The Postpartum Early Discharge program was implemented in late 1995. Specially trained public health nurses provide in-home infant care training and physical assessments of mother and baby to mothers who delivered at Wishard Hospital and were discharged 24 to 48 hours after delivery. The program serves appoximately 80 new mothers per month.

Indianapolis Birthing Project/Sisterfriend Program

To contact the Indianapolis Birthing Project/Sisterfriend Program coordinator, please call:317-221-7420

This venture—part of Birthing Project USA and operating under the umbrella of Project Concern—was established in Sacremento, California in 1988. The program pairs a volunteer or Sisterfriend with one pregnant woman or teen during her pregnancy and for a year following the birth of the baby. The goal of the program, through volunteerism, is to keep more babies alive and healthy by providing direction, emotional support and education to their mothers. To date, 100 Sisterfriends have been paired with Little Sisters.

The Indianapolis Sisterfriends Program recruits individuals from churches, public and social organizations and through self-referral. Health care providers and human service agencies cooperate to establish efficient program coordination and appropriate use of resources.

Community Health Worker Outreach

The MCHD developed a partnership with the Indianapolis Division of Housing and the Welfare Department in recruiting and training residents of public housing to go door-to-door in their apartment complexes and outside of their communities to do outreach for prenatal care. The major accomplishment of this program is an increase in the number of women and children who have been reached and referred. In addition, the program targets pregnant, drug-addicted women who are referred to the I.I. Care Substance Abuse Clinic at Wishard Memorial Hospital.

Care Coordination

Prenatal care coordination is a multiple disciplinary approach to supplementing medical prenatal care with a wide range of coordinated services including health education, parenting, social services referral, etc. The services are provided in the geographic areas of the city with high incidence of infant mortality and poor birth outcome. Services are provided by teams of care coordinators, which include nurses, social workers, nutritionists and community health workers.