KNOW WHAT’S AT STAKE: Family Connects Pierce County Heads to Olympia on Maternal Health Awareness Day
On January 23, 2025, Family Connects Pierce County will travel to Olympia for Advocacy Day, coinciding with the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG)’s Maternal Health Awareness Day, which this year is themed “Know What’s at Stake.” In Pierce County, where Black and Indigenous communities continue to face persistent health inequities, we know all too well what’s at stake if Family Connects and Pierce County Early Childhood Network (PCECN) lose state funding.
Although Washington State has one of the lowest maternal mortality rates in the U.S., the country as a whole still ranks the highest in maternal deaths among high-income nations. For pregnancy-related deaths, defined as deaths occurring during pregnancy or within a year following pregnancy from a complication, the WA State maternal mortality rate is 15.9 deaths per 100,000 live births, compared to the national average of 18.6 per 100,000. Of those in WA, Indigenous birthing individuals face the highest pregnancy-related mortality rates, however disparities still exist among non-Hispanic Black and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islanders in birth outcomes, a result of deeply rooted systemic and structural racism in the U.S. Eighty percent of these deaths in WA were preventable, and programs like Family Connects are actively working to reverse these outcomes. We must act now to support the continuation of these vital programs, and advocate for policies that protect the health of all birthing individuals, centering those in historically marginalized communities.
What is Family Connects Pierce County?
Family Connects Pierce County is a local program serving roughly 1,500 births annually in Pierce County, WA. Launched in 2021, the program provides free, voluntary postpartum nurse visits to caregivers with newborns. Birthing individuals and their infant receive a full medical check-up, and if needed or desired, culturally-relevant connections to additional resources including caregiver support groups, basic needs such as diapers, mental health support, and PCECN for ongoing resources if or when a crisis occurs. We are currently the only nurse-led program in Washington that serves anyone referred to us, including fathers, partners, foster, adoptive, kinship, bereaving, and surrogate caregivers; although it is important to note that current funding only allows for a small number of families to be served at our two implementing hospitals. We hope that all families in Pierce County will eventually be able to access a postpartum nurse visit if they want one.
In 2018, local leaders identified Family Connects and PCECN (formerly initiated as Help Me Grow) as potential responses to the child welfare crisis in Pierce County. Since launching, both programs have proven to be useful interventions for the prevention of additional health inequities impacting family health and wellbeing, including maternal and infant mortality and morbidity.
Since 2021, Family Connects nurses identified symptoms needing urgent attention in approximately 1% of the families we served, warranting immediate referrals to the Emergency Room or 911—catching life-threatening situations before they caused irreparable damage or loss of life. Many families in these cases were impacted by common causes of maternal and infant death including: undiagnosed infant jaundice, C-Section infections, symptoms of pulmonary embolism (side-effect of C-Section), and severe ranges of hypertension and preeclampsia, which disproportionately impact birthing individuals of color. The program has supported multiple fathers who unexpectedly found themselves caring for a newborn when their partner was hospitalized, incarcerated, or in the worst cases, deceased. Our hope is that Family Connects continues to fill critical gaps in the community to ensure all families thrive in Pierce County.
While Family Connects aims to sustainably fund nurse visits through public and private health insurance, the program is currently funded through state and local investments. Most Washingtonians are well aware this will be a challenging year for organizations who rely on state dollars to serve families. However, we believe this investment is essential to addressing our local maternal and infant mortality and morbidity rates, while also connecting families to a vital support system to prevent unnecessary family separations. In Pierce County, we know exactly what’s at stake should Family Connects and Pierce County Early Childhood Network lose funding this legislative session.
How can YOU support Family Connects Pierce County and PCECN?
Local voices are the most valuable component of PCECN and Family Connects. By uplifting your stories and lived expertise to decision-makers, we can bring awareness to the fundamental roles that our programs serve in Pierce County. They remember YOUR stories above what we share as program administrators, and it is crucial that you share what’s at stake if our programs are unable to continue. Please join us on the steps of the Capitol on January 23rd to make your voice heard in support of these vital programs!
Register for FC & PCECN Advocacy Day
Date: January 23rd, 2025 (Thursday)
Location: Olympia, WA
If you can’t join us, that’s okay! You can help us by writing to your legislators to elevate your stories and voices, and ask them to fund FC and PCECN.
This is how to contact your legislator.
Copy this template, adding your legislator’s name at the top and your name at the bottom and send to your legislator via email.