Shania Kerina was pregnant 鈥� and homeless 鈥� when at least once a week she received a call from Angelise Shelby, MSW, LGSW, a social worker with , the outreach program operated by the
Top: 91大神, Baltimore President Bruce E. Jarrell praises B鈥檓ore for Healthy Babies (BHB) and its community partners. Middle: (L) Antoine Dow, owner of Cut Styles, cuts a patron鈥檚 hair; BHB Director Stacey Stephens thanks the community for its support. Bottom: BHB staff with Mayor Brandon M. Scott; Shania Kerina explains how BHB had a direct impact on her and the life of her son.
鈥淚 was house to house. I was in and out the hospital from stress. I was bleeding a lot,鈥� Kerina said. 鈥淚 was so stressed that I just would ignore her call.鈥�
At the time, Kerina knew little about BHB, how the staff conducts aggressive outreach using door-to-door, word-of-mouth, and other methods to build family and community trust and increase community awareness of its prenatal and postnatal support services. She didn鈥檛 know BHB would be credited for achieving a record-low infant mortality rate for Black infants in her neighborhood of Upton/Druid Heights.
Eventually Kerina saw a flyer for a 鈥淪pa Night鈥� hosted by BHB for pregnant women and new moms in her neighborhood. Why not go, she thought. After all, dinner was included.
鈥淭he room was packed just with pregnant moms, new moms, and they had a room where they were watching the kids. They supplied dinner for us at the end. And I don鈥檛 even think they knew that was the only meal I had that day. And I was pregnant at eight months,鈥� Kerina said.
Now the proud mother of a son, 1陆-year-old Kimani, Kerina shared her story at a June 17 news conference celebrating a major milestone in the work of BHB and its partners. After more than a decade of sustained investment in Upton/Druid Heights, the infant mortality rate dropped by 75 percent to 3.8 deaths per 1,000 live births. This rate is lower than the city鈥檚 overall white infant mortality rate (4.4 in 2019) and comparable to Baltimore communities that are far more wealthy and affected far less negatively by social determinants of health. The outcome is directly tied to years of local investment, outreach, and education through the work of the BHB program, officials said.
When BHB launched in 2009, Upton/Druid Heights, with a population that is among the city鈥檚 least wealthy and almost entirely Black, had a higher rate of infant mortality than the city overall.
鈥淚t is no secret that there is a distinct significant racial disparity in infant mortality with Black babies typically dying between two and five times the rate of white babies,鈥� said Mayor Brandon M. Scott, who hosted the news conference. 鈥淭his is an unfortunate dynamic that our city knows all too well. In 2009, 15 out of 1,000 infants in the neighborhood of Upton/Druid Height did not survive birth. But these are more than just statistics. It鈥檚 15 lives that will never have a chance to reach their full potential to watch Saturday cartoons, to eat crabs, dress up for Halloween. While the deck is already stacked against Black children growing up in these neighborhoods, 15 of those precious lives won鈥檛 even have an opportunity to dream or fulfill their potential.鈥�
Scott was joined by 91大神, Baltimore (UMB) President Bruce E. Jarrell, MD, FACS; Stacey Stephens, LCSW-C, director of BHB; Letitia Dzirasa, MD, commissioner of the Baltimore City Health Department; Demaune Millard, president and chief executive officer of the Family League of Baltimore; Traci Kodeck, MPH, chief executive officer of HealthCare Access Maryland; Destiny Simone-Ramjohn, PhD, vice president of community health and social impact at CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield; and Antoine Dow, owner of the Cut Styles barbershop.
鈥淭he work in Upton/Druid Heights is absolutely incredible,鈥� Scott said. 鈥淚 want to thank Director Stephens and B鈥檓ore for Healthy Babies for this measurable impact in this community, and subsequently in Baltimore as a whole.鈥�
In addition to promoting access to prenatal care and primary care services, BHB provides education to new parents through local organizations, schools, and businesses. BHB also leads Moms Clubs for prenatal education and postpartum support, breastfeeding support groups, parenting classes, and case management.
鈥淭his isn鈥檛 just an accomplishment relative to Baltimore. This is a national accomplishment, where we have done a spectacular job,鈥� Jarrell said. 鈥淭he hard part comes up now. How do we make it so that those infants now blossom, reach their potential, and become great contributors to this city? That's the challenge. The other challenge is, of course, to keep our federal government helping us to fund this great program. And so, Mr. Mayor and all of our delegation, we鈥檙e going to need your help to make this kind of funding that goes to social determinants of health really successful.鈥�
Stephens noted a central part of BHB鈥檚 success has been cultivating trust and respect in the Upton/Druid Heights community.
鈥淲e owe a tremendous thank you to Black women who partnered with us during the vulnerable but joyous time of pregnancy and parenting young children,鈥� Stephens said, addressing moms from the community who gathered on the sidewalk, joining program staff in donning purple BHB T-shirts, outside Cut Styles on McMechen Street, where the news conference was held.
鈥淒uring this period, we have deeply listened to Black women as you have transformed educational, perinatal groups into spaces that foster social connections and supports,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e admire how you have emerged as strong advocates and community organizers in your community, which has even led to new entrepreneurial and employment opportunities. We celebrate you as you lead and sustain this ongoing work.鈥�
Stephens especially thanked Dow and other barbers in the community. For eight years, barbershops and barbers have been instrumental in providing space in their shops to share BHB messaging around ways to reduce the infant mortality rate.
Dow met Stephens several years ago when she walked into the barbershop to educate men about Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and the importance of having babies sleep on their backs.
鈥淎t the time, my son was a preemie,鈥� Dow said. 鈥淪o I was laying him down incorrectly. And what she did basically saved my son's life by giving me the information about 鈥榓lone, on the back, in the crib鈥� [a SIDS awareness campaign]. We still have a long battle. I'm not going to celebrate yet because I鈥檓 working with a lot of fathers right now who have new children.鈥�
The barbershop鈥檚 TV plays BHB-created videos about safe sleep and other topics related to the health and wellness of children and families.
Meanwhile, mom Kerina has since become one of BHB鈥檚 鈥淐ommunity Achievers,鈥� a group of new moms that assembles and delivers care packages of helpful items to support new parents.
鈥淭hey are doing so much in the community. You know, not only are they saving lives, but they鈥檙e building families,鈥� she said. 鈥淲ithout B鈥檓ore for Healthy Babies, a lot of people would just be S.O.L.,鈥� she added, as the mayor laughed at the colloquial expression for bad luck.
鈥淚鈥檝e always wanted to say that at a press conference,鈥� Scott joked.
