I've had the privilege of working, living, or playing in all but two of the 50 states, as well as in several of the U.S. territories (Micronesia, the Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam). I have seen firsthand how, collectively, we in the United States represent diverse and culturally rich communities unlike anywhere else on the planet. Together those of us working in maternal and child health make a difference for the women, children, and youth (including those with special health needs), and families of this nation and its territories.

Centering Community-Developed, Community-Led Social Change in Your Journey for Perinatal Health Equity

As more and more maternal and child health professionals strive to advance equity in perinatal health through programmatic and social change, it's fair to wonder what core values are necessary to support those efforts. We got some answers in a packed room at the AMCHP Annual Conference, when Aza Nedhari and Erin Snowden of Mamatoto Village in Washington, D.C., presented its perinatal health worker model. In the session, "Perinatal Health Workers: An Innovative Approach to Maternal Health Service in Communities of Color," Nedhari and Snowden focused on the role their perinatal health workers play in providing wrap-around services to Medicaid-eligible black women to reduce disparities in infant and maternal health outcomes disproportionately experienced by black women in Washington. Among the values Nedhari emphasized, "not replicating models that perpetuate poverty."