Top

Published in:

Open Access 28-09-2024

Building Collective Power to Advance Maternal and Child Health Equity: Lessons from the New Orleans Maternal and Child Health Coalition

Authors: Iman Johnson, Dovile Vilda, Emma Allen, Desiree Boisson, Clare Daniel, Latona Giwa, Melissa Goldin Evans, Hali Ledet, Lisa Richardson, Maeve Wallace

Published in: Maternal and Child Health Journal | Issue 12/2024

Abstract

Objectives

The New Orleans Maternal Child Health Coalition convenes to support and amplify the work of New Orleans-based individuals and organizations working to reduce disparities and protect the health of birthing families in the New Orleans area. The objectives of this qualitative study were to identify successes, challenges, and areas of growth for the Coalition and develop broadly generalizable recommendations for similar groups seeking to mobilize and advance health equity in their own communities.

Methods

Using purposive sampling, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 12 key informants from within and outside of the Coalition. Interviews were transcribed verbatim, and data was analyzed using inductive and deductive coding approaches.

Results

We identified themes relating to the barriers and facilitators to the maintenance of the Coalition, as well as opportunities to advance the mission of the Coalition. Some themes included structural- and systemic-level barriers to achieving the mission, varying perspectives on the effectiveness of the Coalition, opportunities to enhance the operations of the Coalition’s work, and opportunities to involve other individuals, particularly those with lived experience, and non-MCH related sectors in Coalition’s work.

Conclusions for Practice

As the maternal health crisis continues, coalitions like the New Orleans MCH Coalition provide a vehicle to amplify the mission-driven work of people and organizations. Recommendations put forth by the Coalition can also be utilized by coalitions in other jurisdictions.

Available only for authorised users

Anderson, L. M., Adeney, K. L., Shinn, C., Safranek, S., Buckner-Brown, J., & Krause, L. K. (2015). Community coalition-driven interventions to reduce health disparities among racial and ethnic minority populations. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.cd009905.pub2CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Barlow, J. N., & Johnson, B. M. (2021). Listen to black women: Do black feminist and womanist health policy analyses. Women’s Health Issues, 31(2), 91–95.CrossRefPubMed

Bibeau, D. L., Howell, K. A., Rife, J. C., & Taylor, M. L. (1996). The role of a community coalition in the development of health services for the poor and uninsured. International Journal of Health Services, 26(1), 93–110.CrossRefPubMed

Blackstock, U. A., & Blackstock, O. J. (2021). “Serving the People Body and Soul”—Centering black communities to achieve health justice. JAMA Health Forum, 2(1), e201523.CrossRefPubMed

Broussard, D., Richardson, L., Wallace, M., & Theall, K. (2018). Advancing health equity in New Orleans: Building on positive change in health. The Data Center (cited October 14, 2022). https://www.datacenterresearch.org/reports_analysis/advancing-health-equity-in-new-orleans-building-on-positive-change-in-health/

Brown, H. L., Small, M. J., Clare, C. A., & Hill, W. C. (2021). Black women health inequity: The origin of perinatal health disparity. Journal of National Medical Association, 113(1), 105–113.CrossRef

Butterfoss, F. D. (2007). Coalitions and partnerships in community health. Wiley.

Butterfoss, F. D., Goodman, R. M., & Wandersman, A. (1993). Community coalitions for prevention and health promotion. Health Education Research, 8(3), 315–330.CrossRefPubMed

Campbell, L. A., Whitcomb, K., Culver, C. M., & McClanahan, C. (2015). Community engagement: Leveraging resources to improve health outcomes. Nursing Administration Quarterly, 39(3), E26–E30.CrossRefPubMed

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022a). Infant mortality | Maternal and infant health | Reproductive health. CDC (cited September 22, 2022). https://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/maternalinfanthealth/infantmortality.htm

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022b). Pregnancy mortality surveillance system | Maternal and infant health. CDC (cited October 15, 2022). https://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/maternal-mortality/pregnancy-mortality-surveillance-system.htm

Crear-Perry, J., Correa-de-Araujo, R., Lewis Johnson, T., McLemore, M. R., Neilson, E., & Wallace, M. (2021). Social and structural determinants of health inequities in maternal health. Journal of Womens Health, 30(2), 230–235.CrossRef

Ellis, B., & Hicken, M. (2022). These male politicians are pushing for women who receive abortions to be punished with prison time. CNN Politics (cited October 11, 2022). https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/20/politics/abortion-bans-murder-charges-invs/index.html

Fereday, J., & Muir-Cochrane, E. (2006). Demonstrating rigor using thematic analysis: A hybrid approach of inductive and deductive coding and theme development. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 5(1), 80–92.CrossRef

Holm, R. S., & Shaheen, P. N. (1995). Influencing the political process through coalitions: The Michigan Council for Maternal and Child Health. Pediatric Annals, 24(8), 409–412.CrossRefPubMed

Houston, K. L., & Walker, V. P. (2022). “Is This Mic On?” Improving NICU quality of care by amplifying black mothers’ voices. Pediatrics, 150(3), e2022057436.CrossRefPubMed

John, J. C., Kaleemullah, T., McPherson, H., Mahata, K., Morrow, R. B., Bujnowski, D., et al. (2021). Building and advancing coalition capacity to promote health equity: Insights from the health equity collective’s approach to addressing social determinants of health. Health Equity, 5(1), 872–878.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Kassebaum, N. J., Bertozzi-Villa, A., Coggeshall, M. S., Shackelford, K. A., Steiner, C., Heuton, K. R., et al. (2014). Global, regional, and national levels and causes of maternal mortality during 1990–2013: A systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2013. The Lancet, 384(9947), 980–1004.CrossRef

Khare, M. M., Núñez, A. E., & James, B. F. (2015). Coalition for a Healthier Community: Lessons learned and implications for future work. Evaluation and Program Planning, 51, 85–88.CrossRefPubMed

Knight, K. (2015). Why form a coalition? Community Economic Development Publication. https://uknowledge.uky.edu/ced_reports/9

Louisiana Department of Health. (2022). Maternal and child health data indicators 2017–2019. Louisiana Department of Health (cited March 7, 2023). https://ldh.la.gov/page/4170

Luna, Z. T. (2010). Marching toward reproductive justice: Coalitional (re) framing of the march for women’s lives*. Sociological Inquiry, 80(4), 554–578.CrossRefPubMed

Maternal and Child Health Coalition. (n.d.). New Orleans Maternal and Child Health Coalition (cited March 10, 2023). https://nolamch.org/

Reid, A., Abraczinskas, M., Scott, V., Stanzler, M., Parry, G., Scaccia, J., et al. (2019). Using collaborative coalition processes to advance community health, well-being, and equity: A multiple case study analysis from a national community transformation initiative. Health Education and Behavior Official Publication of the Society for Public Health Education, 46(1 Suppl), 100S-109S.CrossRef

Ross, L., & Solinger, R. (2017). Reproductive justice: An introduction. University of California Press.

Rossen, L. M., Khan, D., & Schoendorf, K. C. (2016). Mapping geographic variation in infant mortality and related black–white disparities in the US. Epidemiology (Cambridge Mass), 27(5), 690–696.CrossRefPubMed

Roussos, S. T., & Fawcett, S. B. (2000). A review of collaborative partnerships as a strategy for improving community health. Annual Review of Public Health, 21(1), 369–402.CrossRefPubMed

Staggenborg, S. (1986). Coalition work in the pro-choice movement: Organizational and environmental opportunities and obstacles*. Social Problems, 33(5), 374–390.CrossRef

Taylor, J. K. (2020). Structural racism and maternal health among black women. Journal of Law, Medicine and Ethics, 48(3), 506–517.CrossRef

Taylor, L. (2018). Coalition from the inside out: Women of color feminism and politico-ethical coalition politics. New Political Science, 40(1), 119.CrossRef

Villarosa, L. (2018). Why America’s black mothers and babies are in a life-or-death crisis. The New York Times (cited October 15, 2022). https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/11/magazine/black-mothers-babies-death-maternal-mortality.html

Wittenberg, A. (2022). Louisiana officials approve flood funds stalled over abortion. E&E News (cited October 11, 2022). https://www.eenews.net/articles/louisiana-officials-approve-flood-funds-stalled-over-abortion/

Wolff, T. (2001). The future of community coalition building. American Journal of Community Psychology, 29(2), 263–268.CrossRefPubMed

Title: Building Collective Power to Advance Maternal and Child Health Equity: Lessons from the New Orleans Maternal and Child Health Coalition
Authors: Iman Johnson
Dovile Vilda
Emma Allen
Desiree Boisson
Clare Daniel
Latona Giwa
Melissa Goldin Evans
Hali Ledet
Lisa Richardson
Maeve Wallace
Publication date: 28-09-2024
Publisher: Springer US
Published in: Maternal and Child Health Journal / Issue 12/2024
Print ISSN: 1092-7875
Electronic ISSN: 1573-6628
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-024-04000-7

The Role of Baby-Friendly Designated Hospitals in Breastfeeding Initiation Across Racial/Ethnic Groups in Florida

Open Access
Prenatal Care

Association Between a Mother’s Cervical Cancer Screening and Child’s Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccination Status

Human Papillomavirus

Predicting Admission to Neonatal Care Unit at Mid-Pregnancy and Delivery Using Data from a General Obstetric Population

Premature Rupture of Membranes

Incidence, Causes and Outcomes of Postpartum Hemorrhage in Eastern Ethiopia: A Multicenter Surveillance Study

Open Access

Increased Stillbirth Rates and Exposure to Environmental Risk Factors for Stillbirth in Counties with Higher Social Vulnerability: United States, 2015–2018

Autism Spectrum Disorder and Associated Factors in Children in Spain, 2017: Population-Based Cross-Sectional Study

Autism Spectrum Disorder

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on adolescent vaping

Live
Webinar | 29-01-2025 | 18:00 (CET)

Growing numbers of young people are using e-cigarettes, despite warnings of respiratory effects and addiction. How can doctors tackle the epidemic, and what health effects should you prepare to manage in your clinics?

Watch it live: Wednesday 29th January, 18:00-19:30 CET

Prof. Ann McNeill

Dr. Debbie Robson

Benji Horwell

Developed by: Springer Medicine

Join the webinar