Community Engagement Core

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND POLICY ACTION CORE: PROJECT SUMMARY he NY-CHAMP Community Engagement Core (CEC) will bring together an interdisciplinary, multi-sector team in a shared leadership and governance model to direct our proposed center of excellence. We convene for the first time esteemed community multiple principal investigators (MPIs) - Northern Manhattan Perinatal Partnership (NMPP), Caribbean Women’s Association (CWHA), and The Bridge Directory, with a broader coalition of community organizations, hospitals, academic institutions, and governmental agencies from across NYC and NYS focused on maternal health. The broad goals of our NY-CHAMP CEC are to assure 1) local community needs, priorities, and assets are the very center of our Research Center of Excellence, and 2) our scientific endeavors result in maximum impact as well as meaningful improvements in maternal health outcomes for pregnant women in NYS and NYS. To achieve these goals, the CEC will lead activities that serve as critical foundation and scaffolding for NY-CHAMP’s community engagement efforts. In Aim 1, we will provide a sustained platform for iterative community input and engagement across our research center through the Community-Hospital-Academic Research Governance (CHARGE) Board. In Aim 2, we will launch a novel community-led maternal health provider + patient training program that prepares hospital staff to improve knowledge, communication, and access to care. In Aim 3, in partnership with healthcare institutions in both urban and rural regions including two safety-net hospitals of the NYC Health + Hospitals network and in two counties in upstate New York in partnership with the University of Rochester and NYS Department of Health, we will set the stage for scalability for our interventions, findings, and partnership model. In Aim 4, we will lead efforts to disseminate research findings and support collaboration across maternal health programs in NYC and NYS, including a novel virtual doula care delivery platform. These activities, and the NY-CHAMP goals they support, are aligned with national goals to address maternal health challenges and improve outcomes for pregnant women and families across NYC, NYS, and ultimately the nation.