B'More for Healthy Babies (BHB) is not an organization with a 501c3. Instead, it is an initiative with a wide range of partners (including Baltimore City Health Department, Health Care Access Maryland, Family League of Baltimore, Baltimore Medical System, Casey, Johns Hopkins Center for Communications Program). BHB started in 2009, as a way to combat Baltimore’s infant mortality rate which was one of the highest among large cities in the nation, specifically by addressing safe sleep for infants. BHB strives for all Baltimore babies to be born at a healthy weight, full term, and ready to thrive in healthy families. Its mission is to reduce infant mortality and child deaths through education, advocacy, policy development and research in order to effect systemic change. The work of the initiative includes community mobilization, working with service providers, supporting substance abuse counseling centers, smoking cessation programs, community-based education, provider education, contraception distribution and education, family planning and maternal/early child home outreach, and policy and systems components. BHB primarily works with mothers from the time of conception to children under 5 years old, but some programs exist for adolescents as well. Their programs are data and evidence driven, while addressing the specific needs of the community and population that they serve.
A wide range of involvement opportunities would be available depending on the organization within the initiative students work with. Some possible projects include:
- Health education - providing health education directly to populations
- Updating curriculum
- Data collection and analysis
- Literature reviews on conceptual models and improvement
- B’More Fit for Healthy Babies - activities for male partners, activities for youth, Spanish speaking volunteers
- Food access issues - ex. Working with Hungry Harvest to bring food to client locations
- Development of youth-friendly standards
- Collaboration between Maternal Child Health and STI divisions
- Landscape analysis
- One-time events such as Rattle and Roll
- Focus groups and interviews
- Grant writing
- Tabling at health fairs
- Shadowing during home visits
- Assisting in internal communication
- Information gathering for policy development
Volunteer Training
Volunteer training would consist of a half-day orientation about the initiative and would be dependent on the designated assignment and location.
