Healthy Start Consortia
The Healthy Start Consortia brings together people from various sectors of the community to address pressing perinatal health issues and improve quality and access to clinical care, social support, and education services in our community. The Consortia strives to develop and implement community-driven plans aimed at reducing disparities in perinatal health by addressing the social determinants of health that impact maternal, infant, and family well-being. Our collaborative work includes activities that result in systems changes to accelerate improvement of health outcomes.
Community Partners
The following organizations are proud to be part of the Healthy Start Consortia:
Events
Roll Baby Roll - Walking to Bring Awareness to Infant Mortality
Parents with young children and soon-to-be parents are invited to join us for a half-mile walk. More information here.
Baby Bloom and Celebration of Black Motherhood
Pregnant or have a child under the age of 1 year? Thinking about starting a family? This FREE event will provide plenty of resources for you.
2025 Event Information Coming Soon
Mental Health Awareness
Our Perinatal Mental Health brochure offers valuable resources for maternal wellness, with a focus on eliminating shame and stigma surrounding mental health.
Perinatal mental health is essential for the wellbeing of both mothers and families, yet often overlooked. By raising awareness and utilizing our Perinatal Mental Health brochure, families can access valuable resources and support during this critical period.
Let's work together to break the stigma surrounding maternal mental health and ensure that all families have the support they need to thrive.
Perinatal Mental Health Brochure
Resources links
Maternal Mortality Campaign
According to Iowa’s Maternal Mortality Review Committee Report-IDPH, the following statistics highlight the truth of maternal mortality in our communities:
- Maternal mortality is higher in the US compared to any other developed nation.
- Over 60% of maternal deaths in the US from childbirth are preventable.
- In Iowa, for every white individual that dies, 6 black individuals die.
Healthcare providers, family, friends, and everyone in the community must listen to, hear, empower, and advocate for our pregnant and post-partum people. If you are pregnant or had a baby within the last year, if something doesn’t feel right or you know something is wrong, say something. For more information, visit www.cdc.gov/hearher.
Maternal Mortality Brochure
Maternal Mortality Shirts
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This t-shirt was created to spread awareness about maternal mortality, specifically death that occurs during pregnancy or within one year after the end of pregnancy. Anyone interested in ordering free brochures and/or t-shirts can email CANinfo@everystep.org and/or call 515-558-9971. |
Maternal Mortality Video
Safe Sleep Campaign
The Safe Sleep campaign is the first initiative of the . Launched in early 2020, this educational campaign creates awareness and promotes safe sleep practices with the goal of preventing sleep-related infant deaths. To do this, we provide group education to pregnant women, caregivers, and others who work directly with those audiences.
As part of the campaign, CAN also developed a safe sleep toolkit designed for home visitors, medical professionals, and community members. The toolkit includes a custom-designed screening tool that can be used to help identify risk factors in homes and childcare settings and serves as a way to introduce safe sleep conversations with caregivers. The kit also contains a wealth of educational resources and handouts, including some resources in Spanish. A list of community resources is also provided should families need additional support.
Our team of educators is available to make on-site presentations. Each participant will receive a flash drive and hard copy of the toolkit to keep at no charge. If you would like to learn more, please email HSConsortia@everystep.org or call (515) 558-9971. If you would like to download resources click the buttons below.
Here is a listing of additional infant safe sleep education resources:
Safe Sleep Education for Professionals Video
Video created in collaboration with UnityPoint Health.
Healthy Start
The Healthy Start Consortia is led by the Healthy Start Project of EveryStep. To learn more about Healthy Start, click here.
Future Initiatives
As this collaboration grows stronger, Healthy Start Consortia will continue to develop educational initiatives to improve the lives of people in our community. If your organization is interested in becoming a part of this group, please email HSConsortia@everystep.org or call (515) 558-9971.