It is with a mixture of sadness and celebration that we announce our long-standing Healthy Start program will conclude after July 2024.
This marks a momentous turning point for Southern Oregon — for the first time since its inception, our area no longer meets the need requirements for the federal Healthy Start program.
This means we’ve met our goals in many ways!
Through all the unique challenges that families and health care systems faced as a result of COVID, we measured fewer incidences of low birth weight and infant mortality within Douglas and Josephine counties during the last five years of the program. It’s a huge success for our region and we’re proud of the impact our team has made on the health of our communities.
Healthy Start Program History
The Healthy Start program was first launched as a task force by the Bush administration in the late 1980’s, when racial and ethnic disparities in maternal and child health were prominent in our country. By 1997, an official pilot program was replicated across the country. Forty locations were included in this initial effort — among them, Southern Oregon.
Historically high infant mortality rates in our geographic area spurred the continuation of the program for 27 years. Grounded in an organizational mission and vision, our team spent this time identifying and targeting local areas of concern impacting our community through the facilitation of direct client services and collective impact work.
Guided by 19 federal benchmark measures, this focus most recently included:
- access to health care
- geographic/social isolation
- affordable child care
- transportation barriers
- high rates of poverty
- community safety
- substance use
- limited mental health services
The dedication of the Healthy Start team has never wavered, making it possible to provide key case management support to 1,091 clients in our final year. Over the last few months, staff have worked tirelessly to connect the 270 families enrolled in Healthy Start to alternative local services — ensuring they have the support needed to continue thriving.
Many members of the Healthy Start team will continue their valuable work as members of other embedded community organizations, providing breastfeeding support, car seat installation, infant massage, reproductive planning, and more.
Healthy Start of Southern Oregon has strived to set a standard of excellence and equity over the last 27 years. Although the ending of our local Healthy Start signals that maternal and infant health is moving in the right direction, there is still much work to do.
Through meeting families where they are and connecting them with information and resources, we believe we have made a lasting impact on our community. We know that this important work will continue on after our program ends.
We wish to share our gratitude with the many community partners, enrolled families, volunteers, staff, HCCSO board members, and members of the Perinatal Task Force who have put the health of families in Douglas and Josephine counties first, so that they can continue to thrive!