El Centro de Salud Maple CIty recibe subvención para expandir los servicios de salud para madres y niños
ELKHART — The Community Foundation of Elkhart County has granted Maple City
Health Care Center an award of $150,000 in the Spring 2023 award cycle to expand its
high quality maternal and child health services.
The award will help Maple City Health Care Center serve more women and young
children who have traditionally had a difficult time accessing high quality health
services because of income, insurance status, language, low trust of health systems or
other barriers to care.
Elkhart County has had persistently high maternal and infant mortality for years,
especially among underprivileged groups and those with low access to quality health
care, according to organizers. High quality prenatal and pediatric care are linked to
improved birthweight, lower infant and child mortality, higher rates of breastfeeding,
and more children reaching developmental milestones and being ready for
kindergarten when the time comes.
According to the Indiana Primary Health Care Association, Maple City Health Care
Center has the highest quality scores of any Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC)in Indiana, including in women’s and children’s care, while also having the highest
uninsured patient rate, highest percent of patients identifying as Hispanic, and highest
percent non-English speaking patient mix.
“If we are going to meet our community’s needs in this critical area of maternal and
child health, we need to expand our capacity and welcome new patients to Maple
City,” said Paul Shetler Fast, executive director of Maple City Health Care Center.
The Community Foundation’s support will allow Maple City Health Care Center to
increase clinical staffing to be able to serve more mothers and children. They plan to
hire an additional Family Medicine Physician with Obstetrics specialty, a Nurse
Practitioner with Pediatric specialty, and a Certified Nurse Midwife as well as restart
and expand bilingual pregnancy and early childhood development groups.
“We believe that Maple City Health Care Center is another excellent example of our
mission to improve the quality of life in Elkhart County by inspiring generosity,” said
Pete McCown, president of the Community Foundation. “We are pleased with what
they’ve presented to us, and we expect them to be successful in their efforts. Maple
City Health Care Center is another vital link in the chain of non-profit entities that are
improving our quality of life in Elkhart County.”
“So much of what we do in pregnancy care at Maple City Health Care is unique,” said
Anna Grady, OB physician lead at Maple City Health Care Center. “Our midwifery
program has the only hospital-privileged midwives at Goshen Hospital. Our Centering
Pregnancy program is the only one in Elkhart County and one of the only bilingual ones
in the country. These are critical evidence-based interventions to reduce maternal and
infant health disparities. I’m excited we are growing and will be welcoming new staff
and patients.”
