Racine Lifecourse Initiative for Healthy Families

1. Racine Lifecourse Initiative for Healthy Families Johnson Foundation at Wingspread & Racine/Kenosha Community Action Agency

2. Introductions • Background on the Collaborative • Presentations • Discussion Groups

3. Presenters • Samantha J. Perry • Ahmad Qawi • Carrie Scruggs • Donna Hammond • Tonya Evans • Zakee Darr • Nicole Urquhart

4. What is the Racine Lifecourse Initiative for Healthy Families? • The collaborative is a group of residents, community and state government agencies who are concerned about the high rate of infant mortality in Racine • Led by the Johnson Foundation at Wingspread in cooperation with the Racine Kenosha Community Action Agency

5. What is the Racine Lifecourse Initiative for Healthy Families? • Wisconsin Partnership Program-Lifecourse Initiative for Healthy Families Action Planning Grant in April 2010 • Funds are targeted to the development of a community action plan to reduce infant mortality, and support the Birthing Project

6. Racine City Data Wisconsin Dept. of Health Services, Division of Public Health, Bureau of Health Information and Policy. Wisconsin Interactive Statistics on Health (WISH) data query system, http://dhs.wisconsin.gov/wish/, Infant Mortality Module, accessed 01/28/11. • During 2006 - 2008, the infant mortality rate for African-American infants in Racine City was 3 times higher than for Caucasian infants.

8. Fetal and Infant Death (2007-2008)

9. Chances of good birth outcomes White Barriers African American Supports Life Course 0 5ys Puberty Pregnancy The Racial Gap in Reproductive Potential: A Life-Course Perspective Lu and Halfon,MCHJ, 2003

10. Our Goals • Improving healthcare for African American Women • Strengthening African American communities and families • Reducing stress over the lifetime of families

11. Our Priorities • Improving healthcare access for pregnant women • Improve fatherhood involvement • Improve how systems talk and work together • Improve community connectedness • Reduce poverty • Support working families

12. Why are you here? • Make sure we are correct • Input on programs to be recommended • Additional input on our next steps

13. Our Next Steps • Complete the community action plan • Recommended programs • Role of the collaborative

15. Recommended Programs

16. Northern Manhattan Perinatal Partnership

17. Northern Manhattan Perinatal Partnership Overview • Mission is to save babies and help women take charge of their reproductive, social and economic lives • The NMPP is an organization which primary services are case management and referral • Passionate frontline workers, • Informal relationships with community-based partners • Neighborhood approach • Many program and services working together for a common goal

18. Recommendation for Racine • “This is how we need to do business” • Improve communication with all agencies and organization to better serve families

19. Existing programs

20. Birthing project usa-sister Friends expansion

21. Birthing Project – Sister Friends Overview • Birthing Project SisterFriends is an extended family model • Each volunteer SisterFriend is responsible for one pregnant woman. • During pregnancy, the primary focus is on • obtaining, understanding and complying with prenatal care • development of resources necessary to maintain a healthy lifestyle, such as identifying health and social • attending childbirth preparation and parenting classes and being a birth partner, if needed

22. Birthing Project – Sister Friends Overview • Project participation continues through the child’s first birthday • Supports her extended family in obtaining • parenting and life skills • identifying and pursuing education and employment goals • understanding that she is part of a community which cares for and values her

23. Recommendation for Racine • Racine/Kenosha Birthing Project operated by the Professional Women’s Network for Service, Inc. • Expand the number of volunteers to serve more women • Served 22 women since February 2010 • Delivered 7 full term babies

24. Focus on Fathers/Nurturing Fathers

25. Focus on Fathers/Nurturing Fathers • Nurturing Fathers is a fatherhood program designed to help men develop nurturing attitudes and skills. • The program serves minority, low income, and noncustodial fathers of all races. Father’s ages range from 16-50 years of age. Nurturing fathers addresses infant mortality through: • Infant mortality education that includes: discussions, videos, speakers, and pamphlets • Developing healthy relationship skills with a trained family therapist • Teaching men to recognize, and meet their own needs • Education fathers on the needs of children and the children’s mother

26. Focus on Fathers/Nurturing Fathers What does the program do? • Participants learn: • How to balance work and fathering • The difference between fathering sons vs. daughters • Fathering without using fear or violence • Discipline techniques that work • Anger Management • Meeting child support obligations, and many other successful fathering strategies • The program also help men deal with other issues surrounding manhood, absence of their own fathers, and relating to women better.

27. Recommendation for Racine • Nurturing Father’s Program is operated by the Racine YMCA • Served 1,000 fathers since 2007 through the Children’s First Program • Expand the program to ALL fathers

28. New programs

29. CenteringPregnancy

30. Centering Pregnancy-Overview Group Prenatal Care Program Three major components of care: health assessment education support Eight to twelve women at the same stage of pregnancy meet together for 10 sessions throughout pregnancy and after birth The midwife, within the group space, completes standard physical health assessments

31. Recommendation for Racine • Groups are lead by a nurse practitioner • Groups take place in the community • Church • The YMCA • Community Center

32. Health Leads

33. HEALTH LEADS Overview • Health Leads physicians can “prescribe” food, housing, health insurance, job training, fuel assistance, or other resources for their patients as routinely as they do medication • Located in waiting rooms and staffed by college volunteers, Health Leads volunteers “fill” these prescriptions by connecting patients with key resources.

34. HEALTH LEADS • Health Leads’ referrals to government and community resources • affordable housing, child care, employment, GED classes, and job training • Enable families to avoid crises • Help with link families to increased income and education opportunities,

35. Recommendation for Racine • Setup staff at All Saints and/or WIC Office on Rapids • Work with Gateway and UW-Parkside to get student volunteers

36. Recommendation Four Northern New Jersey Maternal Child Health Consortium- Irvington Success Center

37. Northern New Jersey Maternal Child Health Consortium- Irvington Success Center Overview • The goal of the IFDC is to strengthen and empower families • Friendly neighborhood gathering place where families can go to receive different types of services for themselves and the people they care about • Place where anyone can go for family support, job readiness, workshops, and other general support services • Helps to strengthen lives by empowering all families to succeed

38. Recommendation for Racine • Neighborhood centered success center • Target Census tracts 3,4, and 5

39. Birthing Project usa-Barer Shop

40. Barber Shop Overview • Helps fathers to become active parents in their children’s lives • Offers emotional support and linksfathers to community networks and resources for: • Parenting and life skills • Job placement and employment training • Housing assistance • Anger management counseling • Substance abuse counseling • Legal and Medical assistance • Re-entry support for fathers involved in the criminal justice system

41. Recommendation for Racine • Program operate with Nurturing Fathers Program

42. Teen Skills Program

43. Teen Skills Program • Operated at Mary’s Center in Washington DC • Program teaches teen basic skills such as cooking, finance management, and housekeeping

44. Baby FAST (Family and Schools together

45. Baby FAST Overview • Multifamily group (parents, grandparents, etc) • Designed for young parents, but it can work for older parents • Intended to protect vulnerable families with risk factors, such as single-parent families, teen moms, isolated families, or within communities with higher risk factors. • Monitor babies during cognitive and behaviors development

46. Baby FAST Overview • Family: • reduced aggression, anxiety, depression in families • reduced family conflict and stress • improved well baby skills and awareness • improved family unity and communication • improved extended family communication • revived parenting skills • child brain and neural stimulation

47. Recommendation for Racine • Program can operate at a school or community center • Program for parents 20 years and older

48. Parents as Teachers

49. Parents as Teachers Overview • Relationship-based and parenting-focused home visiting program • Provides: • parenting education • family support • building supports

50. Parents as Teachers Overview • Focus on • parent-child interaction • development-centered parenting • family well-being • Serves a range of families with high needs—not just first time parents, • Offers services throughout the continuum from prenatal to kindergarten entry