For more information contact:
Kelly Cannon
Kelly.Cannon@BlueKC.com
O: (816) 395-3711
KANSAS CITY, MO. (November 3, 2023)—Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City (Blue KC) is proud to announce the implementation of March of Dimes Supportive Pregnancy Care® (SPC) at two sites in the Kansas City region: Swope Health Services, and Saint Luke’s Hospital Medical Education OBGYN Clinic.
SPC is a flexible health education and prenatal care program that enables maternity care providers to successfully implement group prenatal care to help achieve equity in birth outcomes. Under the partnership, March of Dimes will provide the tools, training, and support that health care providers need to implement a sustainable model of group prenatal care in a way that allows them to best serve birthing people.
“Recognizing, addressing, and eliminating implicit bias in health care is a critical step in reducing health inequity and building healthier lives and communities across Kansas City,” said Carmen Bradshaw, Division Vice President, Community Health, Quality & Accreditation at Blue KC. “Our partnership with March of Dimes to extend training to healthcare providers is a first step in helping all people feel confident that their provider understands their unique experience and background and extends care in a way that builds trust. Blue KC is committed to the work of health equity. Through these powerful partnerships and actions, we will gain insights that help us address the glaring disparities in our communities.”
The program began on October 30 and 31 with training for Swope Health and Saint Luke’s providers. It includes framework, teaching, and tools to equip providers to initiate and fully manage each Supportive Pregnancy Care group.
By bringing SPC to key sites across the Kansas City metro, Blue KC and March of Dimes hope to accelerate the expansion of group prenatal care, particularly in traditionally underserved communities, further improving the health of parents and babies while providing more equitable solutions.
“In the state of Missouri and in Kansas City, maternal mortality rates are higher than the national average. This disparity is even more pronounced for communities of color,” said Naiomi Jamal, M.D., M.P.H., Chief Health Officer of Swope Health. “SPC provides the kind of peer and enhanced provider support that is often lacking in traditional clinical practice. Swope Health feels optimistic that implementing this group-based, comprehensive care model for pregnant mothers will help to improve perinatal outcomes for the communities we serve.”
Group prenatal care has been shown to improve psychological outcomes like readiness for labor and delivery, promote the self-empowerment of participants, improve healthcare provider satisfaction, and reduce the risk of preterm birth for some populations. It’s this data that makes SPC so important to the Kansas City population.
For more information, visit https://www.bluekc.com/consumer/member-benefits/health-programs/pregnancy/.
About Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City, the largest not-for-profit health insurer in Missouri and the only not-for-profit commercial health insurer in Kansas City, has been part of the Kansas City community since 1938. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City provides health coverage services to more than one million residents in the greater Kansas City area, including Johnson and Wyandotte counties in Kansas and 30 counties in Northwest Missouri. Our mission: to provide affordable access to healthcare and to improve the health of our members. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. For more information on the company, visit its website at BlueKC.com.
About March of Dimes
March of Dimes leads the fight for the health of all moms and babies. We support research, lead programs, and provide education and advocacy so that every family can have the best possible start. Building on a successful 85-year legacy, we support every pregnant person and every family. To learn more about March of Dimes, please visit marchofdimes.org.
