Black Infant Health Program

This baby beats the odds!

Infant Mortality

Infant mortality is defined as the number of deaths of infants (one year of age or younger) per 1000 live births. The infant mortality rate is the number of newborns dying under a year of age divided by the number of live births during the year.
African American Infants:

The Facts:

African-American babies are nearly three times as likely to die during the first year as compared to other infants. In 2006, the infant mortality rate for African-American infants was 11.6 deaths per 1,000 live births. This rate is nearly 2 to 3 times higher than infants in other ethnic

The risk of having low-birth weight babies is higher for pregnant women who are poor, African-Americans, younger than age 17, have little or not prenatal care, have inadequate diets, pregnancy weight gain is less than 20 pounds, and who smoke, abuse illicit substances, or consume alcohol.

African-American infants in California are twice as likely to be born with low birth weight as White infants. In 2005, the percentage of African-American babies born with low birth weight was 12.8 percent, compared to 6.5 percent for non-Hispanic Whites and 6.2 for Hispanic infants.

Now that we know the situation, let’s see how the MCCN-Black Infant Health Program is working to help reduce the infant mortality rates for African American infants and help these babies reach their first birthday and beyond!

MCCN-Black Infant Health Program

This is a community service outreach and case management program dedicated to improving the birth outcomes of African American women and enhancing the overall health and well being of African American families. The ultimate goal is to reduce the high infant mortality rate within this community.

In 1989, the California Department of Health Services responded to the high infant mortality crisis within the African American community by establishing the Black Infant Health Leadership Committee to develop solutions for improving the health status of African-American woman. The efforts of this group lead to funding for The Black Infant Health Program.

Serving the San Fernando Valley

MCCN was awarded the BIH contract in 2002 by the California Department of Health Services. Our program serves the San Fernando Valley and parts of the Santa Clarita Valley. We have helped hundreds of African American mothers, babies and families. MCCN-BIH has established relationships with many community agencies and organizations to help our clients find a doctor and get medical coverage; get temporary and long-term housing; find employment, resolve legal issues, build self-esteem, mend family relationships, address mental health challenges, find childcare resources, provide transportation and much more!

How can I enroll in the MCCN-BIH program?

Eligibility:

This is a community service outreach and case management program dedicated to improving the birth outcomes of African American women and enhancing the overall health and well being of African American families. The ultimate goal is to reduce the high infant mortality rate within this community.

This program serves communities in the San Fernando Valley and some areas in the Santa Clarita Valley. The MCCN-BIH is specifically dedicated to African American mothers who are 18 years or older who are pregnant and/or have a child less than one year of age.

If you or someone you know wants more information about the MCCN-Black Infant Health Program, please call us at:

(818) 830-6373

Monday-Thursday
8:30 am-6:00 pm

Services - This is how we do it!

The MCCN-BIH staff provides clients with strong support and assistance to insure that they have a healthy pregnancy and their babies have the best possible chance for a healthy start in life. Our program provides assistance to mothers in a number of important ways including assistance finding services for:

• Prenatal and postpartum care
• Pediatric services for the infant
• Social services including Medi-Cal, WIC, CalWorks
• Counseling services for individuals, the family
• Breastfeeding support and counseling
• Transportation assistance for doctor’s visits
• Housing, food and clothing referrals
• Classes on parenting, finances and legal issues
• Special “Sista to Sista” discussion sessions and networking
• Home visits for one-on-one support
• And much more!

A Supportive environment
Relationship Counseling
Individual Attention!
Special Events!

Join Our Family!

Our goal is to serve our clients and create a safe and nurturing environment where they feel comfortable and empowered during their pregnancy and as they begin parenting. Each mother we work with has individual and unique needs. We focus on each person to make sure that we address her needs and offer the services she needs! There is never a cost to our clients for the services we provide.

Community Advisory Board

BOARD DEVELOPMENT: The MCCN-BIH Community Advisory Board consists of a cross-section of community leaders who give input and support for program activities and develop strategies to improve African American birth outcomes in our targeted area.

Advisory Board members also represent the interests of the larger community and seek to insure that the services offered by MCCN-BIH are effective and responsive to community needs.

If you or someone you know is interested in working with the MCCN-Black Infant Health Program, please call us at (818) 830-6373

Social Support and Empowerment

The Social Support and Empowerment intervention model is designed to build effective connections between pregnant and parenting African-American women and various health, social service, and religious organizations as well as with and family members.

The SSE model was developed to take into account the fact that lack of information alone is not the major reason for poor pregnancy outcomes. SSE works because it addresses social factors and provides a framework to teach specific skills. These sessions are designed to increase the clients’ support network and as a result improve the African-American woman’s successful access into the health care system

Culturally appropriate and community based support and empowerment groups are established that validate the client’s concerns and issues. Information is provided through education and guidance by support groups. Independence is encouraged through client education, support networks, and demonstrated positive behavior. Women are encouraged to access job training, affordable housing, and child care resources through assistance and information given by support groups, mentors and health care providers.

Community Support and Collaboration

Informing and educating the community about the health disparities and high infant mortality rates within the African American community is an essential part of the program. MCCN-BIH program staff has provided information to approximately 7,200 community residents.

Our program could not be successful without the partnerships we have established with community agencies and referral organizations. MCCN-BIH has established ongoing, working collaborations to give “real-time” referrals for our clients in order to expand the reach of the program and inform the larger community. We work with a network of faith based entities in the SFV that provide MCCN-BIH access to their congregations on a regular basis. Another important component is ensuring that we have support and recognition from local political offices and elected officials and that has been achieved.

Pictured (left to right) are Senator Alex Padilla, MCCN-BIH Advisory Board Chairman Pastor Reginald Robinson, Yodit Abraha, MCCN-BIH Program Manager and Zev Yaroslavsky, Los Angeles County Supervisor.

A partial list of community agencies we work with include:

Los Angeles Family Housing, The Help Group/Project Safe, Hope Gardens Family Housing, LA County Neighborhood Legal Services, NAACP San Fernando Branch, Penny Lane Transitional Services, UCLA Early Headstart Program, Providence Holy Cross Hospital, Tarzana Treatment Center, SFV Black Chamber of Commerce, LA Best Babies Collaborative, SFV Los Angeles County Family Preservation, Total Family Support Clinic Drug Rehab, El Nido Family Services, and Allcare Behavioral Health Services. This is just a partial list of the many resources that MCCN-BIH has developed.

MCCN-BIH is very pleased to have a special relationship with the ABC7. The local affiliate KABC-TV has been involved and supportive of the MCCN-BIH program since 2005. The Vice President of Community & Diversity services on our Community Advisory Board. In 2006 KABC-TV chose MCCN-BIH to host a Town Hall community event for the entire San Fernando Valley. Each year they provide toys for all the children in the program during our annual holiday event. In 2008 KABC-TV produced a public service announcement for MCCN-BIH featuring a national news anchor. This PSA is scheduled to run in 2009.