Texas programs

Imagine prenatal care with no waiting; a community of friends; relaxed time with your provider; an opportunity to talk about pregnancy, birth, parenting,..even to set personal goals; refreshments and fun!  CenteringPregnancy® is this kind of prenatal care. CenteringPregnancy® was developed by Sharon Schindler Rising, CNM, Executive Director of the Centering Healthcare Institute. The March of Dimes is providing funding to clinics in Texas to provide this innovative model of prenatal care that shows remarkable progress in reducing preterm birth. Expectant women enrolled in CenteringPregnancy® receive their prenatal care in a group setting. They don’t wait in a waiting room; they come directly to group. They weigh themselves, take their own blood pressure, chart their results, listen to their baby’s heartbeat, talk with their provider for a few minutes, enjoy some refreshments, visit with the other mothers-to-be, then circle up with the provider and eight to twelve women due near the same time for over an hour of discussion on the topic of the day. There is sharing, laughter, wisdom, advice—empowerment as women learn from each other and support one another. Not only is the prenatal care different; the outcomes are different. In 2007, 13.7% of babies born in Texas were preterm. Data from the March of Dimes shows that only 6.5% of babies born to moms enrolled in the CenteringPregnancy® project were preterm from 2006-2009.

March of Dimes funded CenteringPregnancy® 2011 Project sites:

• CommUnity Care Rosewood Zaragosa Clinic—Austin
• Charlton Methodist Hospital—Dallas
• Golden Cross Clinic—Dallas
• Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center Dept. of OB/GYN—El Paso
• University of North Texas Health Science Center—Fort Worth
• Casa de Amigos Health Center—Houston
• Good Neighbor Healthcare Center—Houston
• Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center at Fort Hood—Killeen
• Brooke Army Medical Center—San Antonio
• University Health System—San Antonio

CenteringPregnancy® has made a profound difference for babies!

March of Dimes conducted a 3-year study of the CenteringPregnancy® participants, gathering both qualitative and quantitative data.  Results show:

• Women enrolled were diverse in race/ ethnicity, age, and social economic status
• CenteringPregnancy® groups provided women with increased social support.  Women enrolled say:
  
  The “group taught me a lot and prepared me for childbirth.”
  “I have four children and learned more this time than in any other pregnancy.”
• CenteringPregnancy® achieved better birth outcomes than those reported for Texas women: CenteringPregnancy® participants had a preterm birth rate of 6.5%, well below the Texas average of 13.7%.

Demonstrated medical cost savings based on decrease in preterm birth.  Total Centering Pregnancy® study cost savings = $1,196,025.

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