Such health outcomes are frightening for Black mothers and their children, but the disparities also persist for other minority groups. For example, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health, American Indian\/Alaska Native mothers are 2.5 times as likely to receive late or no prenatal care as compared to non-Hispanic white mothers, and their babies are twice as likely as non-Hispanic white babies to die from sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).<\/p>\n

Practitioners and researchers at the conference offered a long history of the debates over why such a minority-white divide exists in maternal health, infant birth weight, breastfeeding and mother\/child mortality rates. The moral call to act \u2014 to engage those who experience the disparate outcome and cross-sector partners, to implement tiered systems-level interventions in the fight to eliminate racial disparities in maternal and infant health \u2014 was resounding.<\/p>\n

Two key insights emerged for me during the conference:<\/p>\n

Community-engaged partnerships are central to making a difference. <\/strong>Often initiatives to improve Native American maternal and children\u2019s health (MCH) populations have only included the voice of health practitioners and health departments. Renee Lawson, pediatric clinic supervisor at Wind River Family Community Health Care Center, suggests addressing historical injustices and gaps in these populations. Tribes must be integrated into the U.S. public health system through effective partnerships with state health departments, community organizations and tribal-serving agencies. Using an inclusive collaborative model, partnerships among the Wind River Family and Community Health Care Center, Sage West and the Wyoming Department of Health led to changes to improve community infant mortality rates. One shift included client-centered reproductive health discussion in clinics. This approach focused on thinking about pregnancy planning and\/or prevention based on client desires; respecting the ambivalence that Native women may experience when in contact with health professionals; and training providers on preconceptions about Native American health and patients as well as culturally respectful contraceptive counseling.<\/p>\n