Nurture KC

We are pleased to welcome Marchai Hudson to our staff! Learn more about her at nurturekc.orgteam/marchai-hudson/.

“As the director of Healthy Start, a program of Nurture KC that serves a majority of Black families, it’s my goal to create a safe place for Black lives to matter. A place for Black women to be heard – in both the good and the bad. We listen to their fears and help them overcome. We listen to their accomplishments and help them celebrate,” says Shannon Williams, Healthy Start Director at Nurture KC. “Our program works to improve maternal health and birth outcomes. When birth outcomes are improved for Black moms and babies, then birth outcomes will improve for ALL moms and babies.”

We are so proud to work in Kansas City and proud of our KC Chiefs!

Nurture KC and the Kansas Health Institute have both published separate, yet related, reports on vaccinations in Kansas. Today our Executive Director, Tracy Russell, shared key findings with decision makers at the capitol – Senator Kristen O’Shea; Senator Cindy Holscher; Dr. John Eplee, Kansas Representative and more. Keeping Kansans safe and healthy through routine immunizations is a bipartisan issue that has support from both sides. Those reports are also now available to the public at nurturekc.org/solutions/immunization/#reports.

Check out our latest news, including 2023 legislative priorities, new doula service offerings and more! Also, a big thank you to Children’s Mercy, Unified Government Public Health Department of Wyandotte County, Infant Loss Resources and Project Eagle for renewing their organizational memberships with us this month.

Watch Nurture KC’s safe sleep video with Charlie’s House, which includes some helpful tips to keep baby warm and comfortable in winter too!

Today we remember and honor the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. His words still resonate now more than ever …

Nurture KC now offers doula services for the moms we serve through Healthy Start, thanks to a grant from the Health Forward Foundation. Lizet Ansaldo with Esperanza Birth Doula Services is helping many of our Spanish-speaking moms with their birth experience. Thank you, Lizet, for making a difference! And congrats to this sweet family on their new addition!

Did you know Nurture KC advocates to ensure families we serve are represented on issues that impact their health and well-being? Our 2023 legislative priorities are …

Missouri:
• Extend Medicaid postpartum coverage to one year
• Establish a statewide Fetal Infant Mortality Review (FIMR)
• Protect state vaccine requirements

Kansas:
• Provide access to Self-Measured Blood Pressure (SMBP) monitoring for pregnant and postpartum mothers in KanCare
• Protect state vaccine requirements

Members of Nurture KC can see details about each of these priorities via our membership page. Become a member of Nurture KC here.