The Birth Place, a unique birthing center and midwifery practice, today announced the launch of the Orlando Birthing Project, a volunteer program dedicated to making a positive difference in women’s lives by supporting them through pregnancy and postpartum to improve birth outcomes in Central Florida. The Project will help The Birth Place offer at-risk women access to one-on-one support from experienced, caring women called SisterFriends.
The goal of The Birthing Project, which focuses on African American women, is to keep more babies alive by recruiting, training and supporting community volunteers (SisterFriends) to provide direction, emotional support and education to the mothers. This support continues for one year after the birth of their babies.
Jennie Joseph, owner and executive director of The Birth Place that has been providing an outreach prenatal care clinic for low income, uninsured and under-insured women having difficulty securing maternity services in Central Florida, said “I have seen a substantial increase in the numbers of women who cannot find help. We have successfully reduced the low birth weight and prematurity rate amongst women of color, those particularly at-risk in our practice, by providing easy access to optimal midwifery care. I am excited to be able to provide the additional emotional support and mentoring that we know is integral to a healthy outcome”.
Kathryn Hall-Trujillo, a CNN Hero nominee, founded Birthing Project USA 22 years ago in California as a means to reducing infant mortality in the African American community. Since then it has been replicated in over 90 communities in the US, Canada, Latin America, Cuba and most recently, Africa with over 10,000 babies being born into Birthing Project communities.
Since 1995, The Birth Place Birthing Center, currently located in Winter Garden, has been providing service to the local Orlando area community by offering access to quality midwifery care for all women, no matter their financial status.
For more information visit: www.thebirthplace.org
