The Push for Maternal Health Awareness

By Victoria Cain, Associate Director

As maternity wards across the United States are shuttering and maternal mortality rates continue to increase, maternal health is in the forefront as advocates and organizations continue to push for improvements, policies, and investment that result in healthy outcomes for both the mother and her child. One such organization is the Maryland Maternal Health Innovation Program, commonly known as MDMOM, which works to improve maternal health by providing resources, trainings, and maternal health data to health care professionals and other programs that support pregnant and postpartum parents. Through a collaboration between Johns Hopkins University, the Maryland Department of Health (MDOH), the Maryland Patient Safety Center (MPSC), and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, MDMOM is funded by the federal agency Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).

Hatcher has proudly partnered with MDMOM for the past three years to advance its mission of combating maternal health disparities, stigma and bias, and educating both professionals and the public. Our support began with the design of print materials for providers and home visiting programs, as well as development of a video to inform pregnant and postpartum parents about maternal warning signs.

Our work together has grown and, over the past year, we’ve worked with MDMOM to develop three interactive training courses for providers. The first focuses on maternal health disparities data in Maryland; the second centers on supporting pregnant patients with substance use disorders; and the third identifies maternal warning signs and shares information about home visiting programs.

Using expert content developed by the MDMOM team, Hatcher’s award-winning creative team designed the courses to align with MDMOM’s branding using thoughtful and diverse imagery. In the second course, Hatcher’s multimedia team produced three accompanying documentary videos that share the lived experiences of several women who experienced substance use disorder while pregnant. The multimedia team then transformed the material into interactive courses using Adobe Captivate and Adobe Premiere. MDMOM’s learning management system will publish the courses and share them with providers across the state to improve care for pregnant patients.

Hatcher is also supporting MDMOM with a public awareness campaign about maternal warning signs. We’re developing a microsite to house patient information and resources and are kicking off a media campaign — digital ads, out of home advertising and earned media outreach — to spread awareness across the state.

Our work with MDMOM speaks to the intentional and robust approach we take in informing audiences, especially with when there is an urgent call to action. We look forward to continuing to partner with MDMOM to improve outcomes for all mothers and families in Maryland.