Forsyth County Infant Mortality Reduction Coalition FROM PROGRAM TO POLICY Community Interventions to Improve Equity in Birth Outcomes

Building a broad-based community coalition  Health care providers, clinics, hospitals  Non-profits and grassroots community groups  Government  Faith Leaders  Community volunteers  Elected officials  Schools / Universities Forsyth County Infant Mortality Reduction Coalition Partnership

 Vision - All babies born in Forsyth County will be healthy and thrive.  Mission - Reduce infant mortality by educating the community about how to prevent infant death, and advocating for systems and policy changes that support healthy birth outcomes. Forsyth County Infant Mortality Reduction Coalition Philosophy

Stress Forsyth County Infant Mortality Reduction Coalition updated Abuse & Neglect Teen Pregnancy Domestic Violence Smoking Poor Nutrition HIV / STDs Single Parenting Low Birth Weight Premature Birth Infant Mortality Drugs & Alcohol Poverty Racism Late or no Prenatal Care Infections SIDS Birth Defects Unplanned Pregnancy Causes of death Contributing factors Root Causes Stress Inadequate Women’s Wellness

Looking Inward  Creating good process  Create rules for operation  Identify evidence based strategies  Strategic planning  Builds clarity in vision  Educate core advocates  Create strategic plans IMRC partners create strategic plan

Moving Forward  Creating community interventions  Review Infant Mortality Tree and ask Where have we been? Where do we need to go? Where do we want to go? Where can we go?  Choose risk factor  Create 2-year advocacy plan IMRC Partners Rank Risk Factors

Celebrate Success !  IMRC Spring Luncheon 2010  Celebrate 17P Campaign.  Announced Preconception Health Campaign.  Teddy Bears for visual impact.  Create media opportunities. Keynote Speaker with volunteers IMRC Activity - What does 61 look like? Local mom’s story of 17P

 Smoking and Babies Just Don’t Mix  Emergency Contraception Campaign  Preventing Repeat Preterm Births – 17P  Preconception Health  Advocacy at State and National Conferences Forsyth County Infant Mortality Reduction Coalition Systems & Policy Initiatives

Social Marketing Campaign Smoking and Babies Just Don’t Mix

Smoke-Free Restaurants

Forsyth County Infant Mortality Reduction Coalition Goal—  Increase demand and access to affordable emergency contraception. Process—  Community Survey  Tools for providers AND consumers.  Educational sessions to providers.  Model policy / protocol. Emergency Contraception Campaign Emergency Contraception Poster

Emergency Contraception Tools Pharmacy Referral Slip - Spanish Emergency Contraception:  can prevent pregnancy AFTER unprotected sex.  Is NOT “the abortion pill.”  Works best within 24 hours after unprotected sex— but can work for up to 5 days HOW TO TAKE PLAN B  Either take both emergency contraception pills together OR take one pill and then take the second pill 12 hours later.  After taking Plan B, use condoms as a back up birth control method for the rest of your menstrual cycle.  Emergency contraception pills are a BACK UP to regular birth control and do not protect against STDs. For more information, go to: Plan B: Emergency Contraception Education Slip - English

Workshops, provider toolkits, in-service education, and mom-to-mom DVD to build capacity among healthcare providers to utilize 17P for preventing repeat preterm births. Preventing Repeat Preterm Births –17P

A one-day conference at United Metropolitan Missionary Baptist Church built grief counseling skills for 150 faith leaders, health care providers, mental health counselors, and social workers. Coalition volunteers United Metropolitan Parents share stories of infant loss Chaplains share Hispanic/Latino resources Hope for the Future – Building Community Support for Families who Have Lost an Infant

Jennie Joseph, Director of the Birth Place and Founder of the Nubian Health Network, promotes the role of African-American midwives to improve parity in birth outcomes. Fleda Mask-Jackson, from When the Bough Breaks presents the impact of race and gender on infant mortality. Kweli Walker, Black Infant Mortality Reduction Resource Center, discusses infant mortality initiatives underway in New Jersey. Carmen Strickland of Winston- Salem SouthSide Clinic discusses the Centering Pregnancy Prentatal Care Model. Conference Highlights

What’s Next ?  FC Preconception Health Campaign  Creating new dialogue about root causes for infant mortality – poverty and racism  Social Justice – Community responsibility for healthy women vs individual choice

Walk a Mile to Save Our Babies Mayor Joines challenges volunteers to keep making infant mortality a priority; bereaved parents share stories and thank volunteers for coming.

Walk a Mile to Save Our Babies 120 Volunteers walked a mile loop with 48 empty baby strollers through downtown Winston-Salem in memory of the 48 babies Forsyth County lost in 2009

Forsyth County Infant Mortality Reduction Coalition Debbie Mason, MPH, CHES Forsyth County Department of Public Health Forsyth County Infant Mortality Reduction Coalition Health Policy Unit 799 N. Highland Avenue Winston Salem, NC