Improving health outcomes within communities

Observed annually in April, National Minority Health Month is a time to raise awareness of the importance of improving health outcomes for all communities, especially those most affected by disparate health outcomes. Help us uplift the lived experiences of our communities and ensure everyone has access to high-quality, respectful care.

Culture, Community, & Connection

Reducing Health Disparities for ALL Families

This annual observance aims to improve health outcomes across the United States by promoting health education and reducing barriers to quality care. Women experience many unique health issues that can pose challenges and complications during pregnancy and childbirth, and even impact infant health outcomes. These health problems disproportionately affect different populations. When compared to national averages in 2023,

  • American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) infants were twice as likely to die from sudden infant death syndrome
  • The mortality rate for AI/AN infants was 64% higher
  • AI/AN mothers were 80% more likely to receive late or no prenatal care
  • The maternal mortality rate for Black/African American women was over twice the national average
  • The mortality rate for Black/African American infants was 95% higher
  • Black/African American infants were 2.5 times more likely to die from preterm or low birth weight complications
  • Black/African American mothers were 49% more likely to receive late or no prenatal care
  • The mortality rate for Puerto Rican infants was 15% higher
  • Hispanic/Latino infants were 7% more likely to die from birth defects
  • Hispanic/Latino mothers were 39% more likely to receive late or no prenatal care
  • The mortality rate for Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (NHPI) infants was 46% higher
  • NHPI mothers were more than 3 times as likely to receive late or no prenatal care

NICHQ INitiatives

Our Work to Reduce Health Disparities

We’re grateful to have insight from a representative team of experts and people with lived experience from different backgrounds on these project-related initiatives to eliminate maternal and child health disparities.

Maternal Health Action & Resource Center (MHARC)

The newly established MHARC will provide capacity building assistance (CBA), training, and technical assistance (TTA) to State Maternal Health Innovation awardees and other Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) – Maternal and Child Health Bureau award recipients. This center will broadly share and disseminate information about evidence-based strategies and guidance with the purpose of enhancing and strengthening recipients’ ability to improve maternal health outcomes for all populations in their communities in order to advance maternal health nationally.

Learn more

Community-Centered Hospital Initiative

The Community-Centered Hospital Initiative (CCHI) centers communities to uplift their capacity as leaders in improving perinatal and infant health by recognizing their expertise and building on their existing practices and processes.

Learn more

Supporting Healthy Start Performance Project

Healthy Start is a community-based federal program seeking to eliminate disparities in infant mortality and perinatal outcomes by working to improve systems of community care in communities with infant mortality rates at least 1.5 times the U.S. national average.

Learn more

National Network of Perinatal Quality Collaboratives

NICHQ works to enhance the coordination and communication of perinatal quality collaboratives across the nation, with the ultimate goal of improving health outcomes for mothers and newborns.

Learn more

Sudden Unexpected Infant Death Prevention

The Sudden Unexpected Infant Death (SUID) Program’s purpose is to reduce the overall rates of sudden unexpected infant death (SUID) and reduce racial and ethnic disparities in SUID; to guide improvements; and to identify and support policy changes that address state- and community-specific SUID risks.

Learn more

Florida CMS Learning and Action Network

By building the quality improvement (QI) capacity of specialty programs, this Learning and Action Network will grow and support a high-quality system of care in Florida that serves all children and youth with special healthcare needs (CYSHCN), regardless of insurance status and location.

Learn more

National Action Partnership to Promote Safe Sleep Improvement and Innovation Network (NAPPSS-IIN)

NAPPSS-IIN is an initiative to make infant safe sleep and breastfeeding the national norm by aligning stakeholders to test safety bundles in multiple care settings to improve the likelihood that infant caregivers and families receive consistent, evidence-based instruction about safe sleep and breastfeeding.

Learn more

Publications

Overview of Perinatal Quality Collaboratives and their activities to advance perinatal healthcare in the USA, 2022-2023

BMJ OPEN QUALITY

Perinatal Quality Collaboratives (PQCs) focus on a myriad of initiatives and topics to advance perinatal care. As the coordinating center for the National Network of Perinatal Quality Collaboratives (NNPQC), NICHQ can help PQCs deepen and accelerate improvements in maternal and child health outcomes.

Summary

NICHQ’s NNPQC team co-authored a study that aimed to improve the understanding of the scope of PQCs and their work by exploring the breadth of initiatives and activities PQCs worked on between 2022 and 2023. NNPQC conducted an online assessment of PQCs representing all 50 states and the District of Columbia, finding that most activities were maternal-focused, followed by mother-infant-dyad-focused and neonatal-focused. The most frequent activity topics included hypertensive and substance use disorders, respectful care, neonatal abstinence syndrome, and mental health among pregnant and postpartum women. The study highlights the expansion of state PQCs in recent years and how they can contribute to efforts that improve perinatal care nationwide.

Read More
First page of the article

Save the Date

Related Observances

Raise awareness and uplift the lived experiences of all communities.

  • April 11-17: Black Maternal Health Week
  • May: Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month
  • July: National Minority Mental Health Month
  • September: Hispanic Heritage Month
  • November: Native American Heritage Month

NICHQ Insights

Reading List for National Minority Health Month

At NICHQ, we are committed to improving health outcomes for all mothers, children, and their families. Check out our insights to learn how you can support this initiative.

View all insights

Smiling doctor holding hand on African American boy who came with parents for medical exam at pediatric clinic.

Empowering families through maternal and child health services

UnitedHealthcare Community & State is working with the National Institute for Children’s Health Quality (NICHQ) through UnitedHealthcare’s Community Collaborative Partnership Program to address family health needs across the U.S. This program aims to promote sustainable, community-centered solutions to reduce infant mortality and improve maternal and child health outcomes.

Read more

Improving Physician Engagement in Community Health Initiatives

Community-based maternal and child health initiatives are transforming how we approach care. Yet, across more than a decade of working with states and communities to improve maternal and infant outcomes, one truth continues to surface: physicians are often missing from the table.

Read more

Healthy Start: Centering Communities to Save Infants’ Lives 

Healthy Start is the only federal program focused explicitly on preventing infant mortality. Launched by President George H.W. Bush in 1991, it has worked in communities with infant mortality rates at least 1.5 times the national average, tailoring services to local needs—from mental health support after disasters to prenatal education and postpartum care. Today, 115…

Read more

Journey into Sickle Cell Disease Advocacy

Dr. Titilope Fasipe shares how her personal experience with SCD led her to become a pediatric hematologist, the importance of including warriors in care plans and practices, and what advocacy work she believes still needs to be done to advance SCD research and treatment.

Read more

Continuing Conversations Around Breastfeeding and Safe Sleep Promotion

  In the U.S., significant racial/ethnic and geographic disparities exist among sudden unexpected infant deaths (SUID) and breastfeeding practices. Combining infant safe sleep (ISS) and breastfeeding promotion on the community level presents opportunities to address these racial/ethnic disparities and associated socioeconomic, cultural, and psychosocial influences.  Join NICHQ for an upcoming webinar, “Their stories are so…

Read more

NICHQ News

Stay in the Loop

Get information on observances like National Minority Health Month and other NICHQ news delivered directly to your inbox.

Additional Articles & Resources

Office of Minority Health – Population Profiles

Find data, resources, and actionable insights to share with your community.

American Indian and Alaska Native Health Asian American Health Black/African American Health Hispanic/Latino Health Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Health