Section III.A.3. MCH Success Story: Prioritizing Health Equity throughout MCH

North Dakota is committed to ensuring health equity is embedded in all MCH work efforts to mitigate health disparities and address social determinants of health. The North Dakota Title V program has promoted health equity across each population domain by implementing strategies founded on collaboration, evidence-based resources, policy, and advocacy. While working to address health disparities, Title V staff are intentional about fostering new partnerships and collaborating with partners to align similar goals and priorities. For example, staff continue to develop and sustain valuable relationships with our tribal partners across the state working with the MCH population. See below for examples of how Title V staff have recently worked with tribal partners to address health equity through various projects and collaborations.

First, staff went to the Spirit Lake Tribe, along with the Tribal Health Liaison serving the area, to discuss a possible pilot project around doula access. The team quickly identified that women were not aware of doula services. Therefore, the Title V staff supported the development of the Tunwin program, a program designed for postpartum women and families to provide support in parenting. In addition, Title V staff collaborated with the NDDHHS Tribal Health Liaisons to identify partners on reservations to increase access to nutritious food. Title V staff and the liaisons worked together with partners on a North Dakota reservation to assure access to healthy food through the development of the Spirit Lake Food Distribution program (SLFD). Spirit Lake is in east-central North Dakota, which is a rural environment prone to flooding. The SLFD program partners with the after-school program to provide education on physical activity and traditional American Indian ways to increase healthy nutrition.

Next, Title V supports the annual Tribal Maternal, Infant, and Child Health Symposium, which brings together community stakeholders, policy makers, and program staff to improve health outcomes for Native American mothers, infants, and children through education and collaboration. Furthermore, at this symposium, Title V staff promote the North Dakota MCH Tribal Mini-Grants, which help to fund tribal projects related to North Dakota’s MCH priorities. Previous mini-grant projects include funding for women’s preventable health messaging specific to American Indian women and funding for infant and child health supplies that include preventative health messaging around important topics such as safe sleep. Likewise, two additional mini-grant projects were recently submitted including a project to promote physical activity at a childcare center and a project to provide breastfeeding education beyond what is occurring through the LPHU.

Lastly, Title V staff implemented a project that was recently accepted into the AMCHP Innovations Database. Title V partnered with the University of North Dakota Family Medicine Clinic to increase adolescent well visits to high-risk populations on the Standing Rock Reservation. A pediatrician visited the schools on the reservation and provided free well child visits to the students. In addition to well checks/sport physicals and mental health screenings, this team partnered with Indian Health Services to offer screening labs for diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and sexually transmitted infections.