Baptist Health has partnered with the Arkansas Department of Human Services (DHS), Division of Medical Services, to implement the state's third and fourth Maternal Life360 HOME programs (Little Rock and North Little Rock). Currently serving Pulaski, Saline, and Faulkner counties, the program plans to expand to other counties served by Baptist Health.
Baptist Health is the first in Arkansas to collaborate with Vanderbilt University School of Nursing to utilize the Maternal Infant Health Outreach Worker (MIHOW) home-visiting model. This evidence-based approach employs Certified Community Health Workers with lived experience to enhance maternal and child health by improving access to medical and social services, fostering positive parenting through education, advocacy, and goal-setting.
The MIHOW program offers home visits, education, and support for mothers, spouses/partners and children under three, extending from pregnancy through the child's second birthday. Health education topics include healthy pregnancy, childbirth preparation, labor stages, postpartum care, newborn care, developmental milestones and childhood nutrition. Program services encompass referrals for food insecurity and utility assistance, help with public assistance applications, safe sleep education, lactation support, and monthly in-person and virtual support groups with a perinatal mental health specialist.
Many program participants utilize Baptist Health Pregnancy Clinic-Little Rock, staffed by an OBGYN, two advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs), a sonographer, and a phlebotomist. This clinic welcomes all pregnant women regardless of their ability to pay.
To be eligible for Life360 home-visiting services, the adult must:
-Be enrolled in ARHOME or Arkansas Medicaid and has a diagnosis of high-risk pregnancy (the Life360 assists women in getting assessed for that diagnosis);
-Not currently receiving state-or federally funded home-visiting services from a provider that covers pregnancy for the first two years of a baby’s life; and
-Live in the Life360 service area (Pulaski, Saline or Faulkner counties).
For Maternal Life360 HOME program enrollment or further information, contact the Baptist Health home visiting team at (501) 202-4099 or mihow@baptist-health.org. Additional info is available at ar.gov/life360.