Emerging Practice

Missouri Maternal Health Action Network: Building Sustainable Infrastructure to Improve Maternal Behavioral Health Outcomes

State/Jurisdiction: Missouri
Setting: Community
Population: Women & Maternal
Topic Area: Mental Health & Substance Use
NPMs:

The Missouri Maternal Health Action Network (MHAN) was formally launched in 2022 with funding from the Department of Health and Senior Services, in response to gaps identified through Missouri’s HRSA Emerging Issues grant application and participation in the PRISM Learning Community. Stakeholders recognized the urgent need for a coordinated, statewide infrastructure to support families affected by perinatal substance use and behavioral health challenges. MHAN serves pregnant and parenting women of childbearing age, particularly those navigating recovery, child welfare involvement, and other social determinants of health, while also engaging a broad coalition of professionals, agencies, and community members. Guided by the Strengthening Families Framework and a life-course perspective, the Network emphasizes person-centered, trauma-informed, and stigma-free care that strengthens protective factors such as parental resilience, social connections, knowledge of parenting, and access to concrete supports.

MHAN’s infrastructure integrates personal experience at every level, ensuring that mothers directly affected by substance use and mental health challenges shape priorities, strategies, and solutions. Core components include the Moms’ Advocacy Network, the Leadership and Self-Advocacy Academy, and Core Priority Workgroups, which develop targeted action plans to enhance cross-system collaboration and service delivery. Through ongoing stakeholder engagement, feedback mechanisms, and partnerships with public health agencies and community leaders, MHAN empowers mothers as leaders and advocates, advancing systemic change and ultimately improving behavioral health outcomes for mothers, children, and families across Missouri.



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Implementation Handout



CONTACT INFORMATION
University of Missouri - Kansas City, Institute for Human Development
Danielle Chiang
chiangd@umkc.edu
starrb@umkc.edu

Practice Website