Morgan State University is spearheading a $15 million federally funded initiative to address the alarming rates of Black maternal and infant mortality in the United States. The effort, led by the university’s School of Community Health and Policy, aims to create a blueprint for improving maternal health outcomes in Black communities nationwide.
Black infants are nearly four times less likely to survive due to low birth weight complications, and Black mothers are twice as likely to receive late or no prenatal care, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. To combat these disparities, Morgan State will serve as the coordinating center for a network of 16 research centers at minority-serving institutions across the country.
“This work has been prioritized, and Morgan has made a very intentional, strategic effort to be the foremost authority in addressing the longstanding inequalities Black and brown women disproportionately face,” said Kim Dobson Sydnor, dean of the School of Community Health and Policy.
The initiative includes a $11 million grant to establish the “Maternal Health Research Network for Minority-Serving Institutions” and a $3 million grant to improve maternal health in the Greater Baltimore region. Additionally, researchers will study the impact of doula care on reducing maternal and infant mortality among underserved Black and brown women.
Yvonne Bronner, principal architect of the research, emphasized that over 60% of maternal and infant mortality causes involve social determinants of health. The project aims to address these systemic issues through a multifaceted, community-engaged approach over the next 15 years.
See “Bridging the Divide in Maternal and Child Health” (March 13, 2024)
