Boston, Oct. 31, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Centering Healthcare Institute (CHI) today announced $1.75 million in philanthropic funding from leading foundations to expand access of its group healthcare model. Grants from Omidyar Network, Overdeck Family Foundation and Pritzker Children’s Initiative will support CHI’s multi-year growth plan to transform the way pregnancy and early childhood care are delivered across the country and tackle head-on the large inequalities in maternal and child outcomes by race, ethnicity and income.
The funding will be used to expand Centering by 2023 to nearly 1,400 sites and to serve more than 400,000 families annually. CHI will focus on three key initiatives:
- Enhancing the organizational systems necessary to support this expansion
- Furthering the regional delivery and support network with rapid expansion in high-need regions (as defined by pregnancy, birth, and age 0-2 outcomes)
- Supporting a pathway that eliminates financial barriers to help resource-poor community health centers and safety net hospitals implement Centering
“We are truly grateful to Omidyar Network, Overdeck Family Foundation and Pritzker Children’s Initiative for investing in the futures of our nation’s children and families. Their partnership further strengthens our ability to transform healthcare delivery and provide better care for pregnant women and young children, and increase the chances for each new family to thrive,” said Angie Truesdale, CEO of CHI. “Centering has shown to have a positive impact on health outcomes of mothers and infants, improve the experience of care for patients and providers, and bolster parents with knowledge, skills and a community of support that lead to positive life outcomes for their children.”
An extensive and growing body of research demonstrates that the critical period of health, beginning with prenatal care through the third birthday, provides the foundation for babies to develop physically, cognitively, emotionally and socially. Adverse birth outcomes and early life experiences influence child brain development and have significant implications on future health and developmental outcomes.
"When it comes to reducing disparities and addressing critical early childhood outcomes that can set a child up for future lifelong success—including education, health, and development milestones—prenatal and pediatric visits are the only setting that reaches nearly every mother and child birth to three,” said Ashley Beckner, Venture Partner at Omidyar Network, Education. “We are excited to support Centering Healthcare Institute as they continue expanding nationwide, shifting what we imagine possible for care during, and before, early childhood.”
With CenteringPregnancy® and CenteringParenting® models, Centering is the only intervention that offers continuity of care from pregnancy through the critical early childhood period of health and development (P-2+) with a focus on parent activation and empowerment. In over 100 published studies and peer-reviewed articles, CenteringPregnancy has been proven to lower the risk of preterm birth, close the disparity gap in preterm birth between black and white women and improve both visit attendance and patient satisfaction. Participants report readiness for birth and infant care, higher breastfeeding rates and greater confidence. Centering reduces social isolation, creates a community of support, and empowers parents with knowledge and skills to support their family’s health. The available evidence suggests that Centering has a combined effect of stress reduction, education and patient activation that brings about these impressive results.
“To provide all children the opportunity to unlock their potential, we must ensure that they receive the necessary support from the very beginning. We're thrilled to support Centering Healthcare Institute and the CenteringPregnancy and CenteringParenting models, which reduce the risk of preterm birth, increase breastfeeding, safe sleeping, and developmental screening – all outcomes that research links to future success,” said Anu Malipatil, Vice President, Education at Overdeck Family Foundation. “We are equally excited about the social impact the model has on families, as well. Providing care in groups is more than a cost-effective delivery model; it offers an opportunity for families to build social capital, allowing for meaningful and lasting connections. At Overdeck Family Foundation, we work to scale evidence-based and innovative ideas that will improve children's lives for generations to come, and Centering is a perfect example.”
“The CenteringPregnancy model has shown outstanding results, and we are confident that this partnership will further ensure healthy beginnings for our nation’s children. One of our highest priorities at Pritzker Children’s Initiative is to reduce infant and maternal mortality, and particularly to reduce racial disparities in those outcomes,” said Gerry Cobb, the Initiative’s director. “We are hopeful this new partnership with the Centering Healthcare Institute will bring better care to infants and families across our country.”
With an initial investment from the Valhalla Charitable Foundation, CHI began aggressive expansion in 2017 and scaled the Centering framework to nearly 600 sites in the U.S. CHI partners with clinical practices to implement systems change and build the infrastructure to support a successful and sustainable Centering practice. Centering is appropriate and effective for all families and is offered in every type of healthcare setting including Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), community & hospital clinics, academic medical settings, private practice, the U.S. military and Indian Health Service.
About CHI
CHI is a national non-profit organization, based in Boston, MA, with a mission to improve health and transform the way care is delivered. With over two decades of experience as the go-to resource for group healthcare, CHI has pioneered and sustained the Centering model of group care currently offered across nearly 600 sites. The evidence-based Centering model combines health assessment, interactive learning and community building to help support positive health behaviors and drive better health outcomes. CenteringPregnancy® and CenteringParenting® provide the highest quality of care to families from pregnancy through age two of the child. The CenteringHealthcare® model of care is being extended to many different health conditions including groups for asthma, diabetes, opioid recovery, cancer survivors, chronic pain and other patient populations. Visit www.centeringhealthcare.org for more information.
About Omidyar Network
Omidyar Network is a philanthropic investment firm dedicated to harnessing the power of markets to create opportunity for people to improve their lives. Established in 2004 by philanthropists Pam and Pierre Omidyar, the founder of eBay, the organization has committed more than $1 billion to innovative for-profit companies and non-profit organizations to catalyze economic and social change. To learn more, visit www.omidyar.com, and follow on Twitter @omidyarnetwork.
About Overdeck Family Foundation
Overdeck Family Foundation aims to open doors for every child in the U.S. by measurably enhancing education both inside and outside the classroom. In order to provide all children the opportunity to unlock their potential; the Foundation supports organizations and research in five areas: early childhood, educators, schools, out of school STEM opportunities, and the use of data, including education data, to improve policy and practice. For more information about the Foundation and our work, please visit overdeck.org.
About the Pritzker Children’s Initiative (PCI)
The Pritzker Children’s Initiative (PCI), a project of the J.B. and M. K. Pritzker Family Foundation, is committed to building a promising future for our country by investing in and supporting solutions in early childhood development during the prenatal to age three period, with the goal of every child reaching kindergarten ready to succeed. More information about PCI can be found here.