FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
MISS. ADDS MORE SERVICES TO AID INFANTS AND PREGNANT WOMEN
Bower Foundation Helps Mississippi State Department of
Health to Accredit its Perinatal High Risk Management/
Infant Services System
JACKSON, Miss. November 13, 2013 – The Bower Foundation has awarded the Mississippi
State Department of Health (MSDH) over $850,000 to enhance the existing Perinatal High Risk
Management/Infant Services System (PHRM/ISS), which provides enhanced services to
Medicaid-eligible pregnant/postpartum women and infants. This funding from Bower will help
PHRM/ISS become accredited within the Healthy Families America model, along with adding
the Partners for a Healthy Baby curriculum and Interconception Care Project of California
patient education.
Established 25 years ago, PHRM/ISS is a voluntary program that provides services including case
management, psychosocial and nutritional counseling, home visits and health education.
PHRM/ISS’s services are available to Medicaid-eligible pregnant/postpartum women with highrisk pregnancies and infants at high risk for health problems.
“While the existing PHRM/ISS statewide system has provided much education and assistance to
many high-risk women and infants throughout the years, it is not an evidence-based case
program, does not have a standardized curriculum and does not include depression, domestic
violence or substance abuse assessments,” said Anne Travis, CEO of The Bower Foundation. “By
becoming accredited within the Healthy Families America model, MSDH will be able to deliver
services in a way that has been proven to be effective. Bower is very pleased to aid PHRM/ISS in
providing assistance to these Mississippi women and children in need.”
Healthy Families America is a nationally recognized, evidence-based home visiting program
designed to work with overburdened families who are at-risk for adverse pregnancy outcomes
and childhood experiences. It is recognized as the best home visiting model to work with
families who have histories of trauma, violence, mental health and substance abuse. This
program has a strong research base, which includes randomized controlled trials and welldesigned, quasi-experimental research with notable outcomes.
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“The PHRM/ISS case management program is critical to the more than 6,000 women and
infants who participate yearly,” said Dr. Mary Currier, State Health Officer. “By becoming
accredited with the Healthy Families America model along with utilizing standardized curricula,
our program will strengthen and help more Mississippians.”
State PHRM/ISS Coordinator of MSDH Danielle Seale said that with the help of Bower
Foundation funding, MSDH plans to make the following changes to the Perinatal High Risk
Management/Infant Services System statewide:
 Utilize the Partners for a Healthy Baby curriculum and Interconception Care Project of
California patient education statewide;
 Collaborate with Medicaid to streamline the program;
 Strengthen relations with referral sources within the local communities;
 Identify potential community action board partnership;
 Establish a coordinated team of statewide staff to develop a case management program
along with a MSDH case management policy and procedure manual;
 Identify two pilot districts for transition of the Healthy Family model.
“Through the assessment of the pilot districts, we will develop a plan for statewide
implementation of the new model,” states Seale. “MSDH anticipates a three and a half year
period to extend these new services to our existing programs throughout the state.”
Along with the Perinatal High Risk Management/Infant Services System, The Bower Foundation
has also awarded grants this year to:
 University of Mississippi for the development and implementation of an Elementary
Education Degree with a Health and Physical Activity Endorsement at the School of
Education;
 Mississippi Department of Education for the purchase of combination steamer ovens in
school cafeterias;
 Mississippi Public Health Association for the rebranding of MPHA as the voice for public
health.
To learn more about the state’s existing Perinatal High Risk Management/Infant Services
System or the Healthy Families America model, click here:
http://msdh.ms.gov/msdhsite/_static/41,0,106.html and
http://www.healthyfamiliesamerica.org/home/index.shtml.
Founded in 1996, The Bower Foundation is focused on the development of strategies to improve
the health of Mississippians thru funding important projects and initiatives throughout the
state. For more information of The Bower Foundation, please visit www.bowerfoundation.org.
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For More Information:
Jana Brady
The Ramey Agency
jbrady@tra.net
601-898-8970
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