Hackley Community Care is excited to offer Centering Pregnancy at their health center. Centering Pregnancy is a model of care developed by the Centering Healthcare Institute that integrates three components of prenatal care within a group setting: health assessment, education and support.

The model brings together women that are in the same trimester of their pregnancy in a group setting where they will learn care skills for themselves and their infants during their pregnancy, their births and the postpartum period.  All Centering Pregnancy groups are facilitated by an OB provider. The group consists of 8-12 pregnant women expected to deliver around the same time, and they have the opportunity to develop a support network with other group members. 

Centering is unique in that the expectant mother receives her assessments through self-care activities within the group with other moms.  The group also has the opportunity to discuss and problem-solve topics and concerns related to their pregnancy, nutrition, and the opportunity to motivate and empower each other. This creates a safe, trusting environment that establishes sustained relationships and support. Centering Pregnancy sessions are ten weeks in duration and each session lasts about two hours. Expectant mothers can also bring their support person if they like. After delivery, new mothers also receive post-partum care counseling and breastfeeding support if they choose to do so.

Implementing the Centering Pregnancy model allows Hackley Community Care to impact the health status of pregnant women by providing learning skills to ensure the expectant mom has a healthy baby. When expectant moms have healthy babies, this also improves the county overall health status of low birth weight babies, and increases breastfeeding rates.

Hackley Community Care will begin their Centering Pregnancy sessions in June of 2015 and they are currently registering expectant moms. If you are an expectant mother and interested in participating in Centering Pregnancy, please call our OB and Women’s Health Services Department at 231.737.1335 Ext. 6655 to register and obtain more information.

To learn more about Hackley Community Care, please visit our website at www.hackleycommnitycare.org . You can learn more about the Centering Healthcare Institute at www.CenteringHealthcare.org .