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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Project Examples: Maternal health and prenatal care

Evidence-Based Examples

UAMS IDHI High-Risk Pregnancy Program
Updated/reviewed December 2022
  • Need: Arkansas had high rates of low birthweight babies, and pregnant individuals in rural areas had difficulty accessing specialty obstetric care.
  • Intervention: The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) created the Institute for Digital Health & Innovation (IDHI) High-Risk Pregnancy Program to increase access to care for pregnant individuals in an effort to improve outcomes for high-risk pregnancies.
  • Results: The program has increased access to care and improved neonatal outcomes for rural Arkansas individuals through a variety of programs and has been recognized by various organizations as a model program.
Domestic Violence Enhanced Home Visitation Program (DOVE)
Updated/reviewed March 2022
  • Need: To reduce violence against pregnant women and women with infants in rural Missouri.
  • Intervention: A tool for existing home visiting programs, DOVE is a brochure-based and safety planning intervention for women experiencing interpersonal violence.
  • Results: Women receiving the DOVE intervention saw a larger average decrease in number of violent incidents than women in the control group.

Effective Examples

funded by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Perinatal Health Partners Southeast Georgia
Updated/reviewed February 2023
  • Need: In 12 rural southeast Georgia counties, high-risk pregnant individuals potentially face adverse birth outcomes, including maternal or infant mortality, low birthweight, very low birthweight, or other medical or developmental problems.
  • Intervention: An in-home nursing case management program for high-risk pregnant individuals in order to maximize pregnancy outcomes for mothers and their newborns.
  • Results: Mothers carry their babies longer and the babies are larger when born, leading to improved health outcomes.

Promising Examples

funded by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy Healthy Connections, Inc. Healthy Families Arkansas
Updated/reviewed December 2022
  • Need: High poverty rates and lack of access to healthcare make caring for unborn and newborn children difficult for young mothers in Arkansas's Polk and Garland Counties.
  • Intervention: An Arkansas-based program provides a national healthcare service to expectant and young mothers. Prenatal check-ups, education, transportation, well-baby checks and child immunizations are all provided by the Healthy Connections, Inc.
  • Results: The program's results demonstrate an increase in first trimester prenatal care rates and child immunization rates, as well as a dramatic decrease in confirmed cases of child abuse.
Contingency Management Smoking Cessation in Appalachia
Updated/reviewed June 2022
  • Need: To reduce smoking rates of pregnant women and adolescents in Appalachian regions of eastern Kentucky and Ohio.
  • Intervention: A web-based smoking cessation program that offered monetary incentives to reducing smoking.
  • Results: Participants significantly reduced smoking rates or quit altogether.

Other Project Examples

Kid One Transport
Updated/reviewed March 2023
  • Need: Transportation to medical appointments for children and expectant mothers living in rural Alabama.
  • Intervention: Kid One Transport provides rides to medical appointments for clients who otherwise have no other means of transportation.
  • Results: The program has transported 442,439 children and expectant mothers to and from medical appointments. Children have recovered from life-threatening illnesses and are experiencing a higher quality of life.
Mother's Milk Bank of South Carolina
Updated/reviewed January 2023
  • Need: Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs) across the state of South Carolina were purchasing breast milk from out-of-state milk banks for preterm infants.
  • Intervention: The Mother's Milk Bank of South Carolina (MMBSC) opened 26 sites in South Carolina for breast milk to be donated, safely pasteurized, and delivered to NICUs across the state.
  • Results: Over 571,586 ounces of milk have been donated to MMBSC depot sites and over 402,523 ounces of milk have been delivered to South Carolina NICUs.
funded by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy MIST: Mothers and Infants Sober Together
Updated/reviewed May 2019
  • Need: To address the needs of pregnant women who are using substances and infants born into drug-positive families.
  • Intervention: The Mothers and Infants Sober Together (MIST) program assisted mothers who used substances get treatment and provide a safe, drug-free home for themselves and their newborn.
  • Results: MIST has helped mothers find treatment and education and has helped children grow up in safe and healthy homes.
Taos First Steps Program
Updated/reviewed May 2019
  • Need: Support for families that promotes early childhood development and the parent-child relationship.
  • Intervention: Home visits which provide information, support, and access to early childhood resources and tools for building relationships.
  • Results: Easily replicable program, even for rural areas, that results in growth in knowledge and self-sufficiency for families as they provide for and understand their child's earliest years.