News
January 27, 2010People’s Community Clinic Awarded Grant From the March of Dimes for Centering Pregnancy Program
Gift Supports Group Prenatal Visits
AUSTIN, TX –January 27, 2009– People’s Community Clinic today announced that The March of Dimes has awarded the Clinic a $5,000 grant to renew its support of the PCC’s group prenatal program.
In the fall of 2007, The March of Dimes awarded People’s Community Clinic an initial grant to pilot its Centering Pregnancy® curriculum, and the Clinic began offering group prenatal visits to a handful of patients. At PCC and locations across the country, more low-income women are taking part in this new concept of prenatal care; a trend medical experts say is fostering happier expectant moms and healthier babies.
PCC’s program was highly successful, and this year’s grant will help the program continue. About 100 of PCC’s 1,500 prenatal patients now participate in the program. Each group meets every 4 weeks for 4 sessions, then every two weeks for 6 sessions, with new groups starting every few months. PCC’s nurse practitioners ensure that the proper medical care is delivered and that critical information is relayed, but do so in a setting far different from the typical medical model. PCC staff has been able to step back and let the groups develop and set their own agendas for achieving healthy pregnancies. The group visit allows plenty of time for questions, and the members are very supportive of one another, sharing their concerns and developing friendships along the way.
Research published in 2007 by the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology showed that group visits by young, mostly African American women resulted in significantly fewer premature births. That study, led by Yale University, showed that of 1,047 women randomly assigned to either group prenatal visits or standard care, 9.8 percent of those who had group visits had premature births compared with 13.8 percent of those who received standard care.
“Thanks to the vision of The March of Dimes, PCC has been able to pilot a new model of care for our pregnant mothers and we are looking forward to continuing this successful program,” said Regina Rogoff, Chief Executive Officer of People’s Community Clinic. “We are fortunate and grateful that The March of Dimes trusted the Clinic to implement this model for our patient population,”
About The March of Dimes
The March of Dimes is the leading organization for pregnancy and baby health. With chapters nationwide, the March of Dimes works to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth, and infant mortality.
About People’s Community Clinic
People’s Community Clinic offers comprehensive, community-wide health care services that include family planning; prenatal care; pediatrics; adolescent medicine and adult medical care; as well as health education, prevention and social services. Founded in 1970, the Clinic is among the oldest and most successful independent clinics in the country providing high quality health care to thousands of uninsured and medically underserved children and adults each year.
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MEDIA CONTACT:
Alicia Quinn Sankar (on behalf of People’s Community Clinic)
Alicia.Sankar@fleishman.com
657-6733 (mobile)