Detroit Regional Infant Mortality Reduction Task Force's Initiative to “Sew Up the Safety Net for Women & Children:" The Power of Partnerships

Alarmed by high infant mortality rates and alarming health disparities, the CEOs of four competing, major health systems in metropolitan Detroit committed their organizations to finding sustainable and collaborative solutions.   They commissioned the Detroit Regional Infant Mortality Reduction Task Force to develop an action plan to reduce infant mortality.  Through this public-private partnership of health systems, public health, academic and community partners, Sew Up the Safety Net for Women and Children, later rebranded as Women-Inspired Neighborhood (WIN) Network: Detroit, aims to tighten a loose net of disconnected medical and social services, building a comprehensive, accountable care system that engages the residents of three Detroit neighborhoods to improve the conditions fostering infant survival.

WIN Network connects women to community resources through community health workers, educates medical providers on the impact of social factors, and engages the broader community in preconception, interconception and prenatal health. Of the first 155 babies born to program participants, there have been no infant deaths, and mothers’ lives have changed. They are going back to school, transitioning out of homelessness, and finding jobs.  

The WIN Network works through strategic partnerships to mitigate the place-based matters relevant to infant mortality. This presentation will illustrate the interactions among multi-disciplinary partners to promote healthy birth outcomes for Detroit families; understand women’s framework for pursuing success; address policy and systems level changes; engage business and education stakeholders; and maintain engagement with high-level partners.  The session will outline pertinent elements of partnerships, strategies for ongoing engagement and collective impact.