Cutting-Edge Practice

Maternal Experience Survey (MES)

State/Jurisdiction: New Jersey
Setting: Community
Population: Women & Maternal
Topic Area: Equity & Anti-Racism Health Promotion & Communication Reproductive Health
NPMs: NA

Women of Color (WOC) face life-threatening complications and deaths during pregnancy or after giving birth. Compared to their white counterparts, Black mothers in New Jersey are seven times more likely to die as a result of pregnancy-related complications1 , and Black babies are three times more likely to die before their first birthday.2 Many of these complications and deaths are preventable. Birthing people in New Jersey are at a heightened risk of poor maternal and birth outcomes including maternal mortality, infant mortality, prematurity, and pregnancy and postpartum complications. The Maternal Experience Survey (MES) is a community tool designed to improve care and reduce childbirth-related disparities for Women of Color (WOC). Developed by the NAACP Atlantic City Black Infant and Maternal Mortality (BIMM) task force and the Prematurity Prevention Initiative, this tool allows birthing people to share their experience in a safe manner embedded with identity acceptance and respect. The MES relies on Black mothers' critical personal feedback to improve healthcare delivery. The NAACP Atlantic City Black Infant and Maternal Mortality (BIMM) task force is committed to mitigating disparities that impact birthing People of Color and their families. The task force has a diverse membership of legislators, health professionals, educators, faith-based leaders, community members, and many others that seek change in their communities and state at large. The purpose of the taskforce is to build a community-level action response to the social and birthing injustices in New Jersey.


Back to Database

Implementation Handout
NAACP Maternal Experience Survey: Statewide Implementation Report


CONTACT INFORMATION
Family Health Initiatives(FHI)/ Southern New Jersey Perinatal Cooperative (SNJPC)
Christine Ivery
civery@fhiworks.org

Practice Website