Mt. Hope Family Center receives grant to improve maternal and infant health – University of Rochester

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Mt. Hope Family Center receives grant to improve maternal and infant health
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The University of Rochester’s Mt. Hope Family Center (MHFC) has received a $1.7 million grant from Monroe County to improve health outcomes for expecting parents and infants across the county.
The new funding from the Monroe County Department of Public Health will allow MHFC to launch the Building Healthy Communities (BHComm) initiative, an expansion of their nationally recognized Building Healthy Children program. All pregnant women, new parents, and infants within the University of Rochester Medical Center system will have access to enhanced screening, outreach, and home-based services—making access to early support more universal, equitable, and responsive to family needs.
“Mt. Hope Family Center has been in partnership with the Monroe County Department of Human Services for decades, but this award from the county will expand our reach and evidence-based services to a whole new level at a time when it is needed most,” says Jennie Noll, executive director of the Mt. Hope Family Center. “I am deeply grateful to County Executive Adam Bello for his leadership and support and to Congressman Joe Morelle and Senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand for making this program expansion possible.”
She continues, “We are thrilled to share this award with our long-time colleagues in the Social Work Division at Strong Memorial Hospital, whose enduring partnership now offers new avenues to prevent child abuse, improve maternal and infant outcomes, and meet the mental health needs of more families than we have ever reached before.”
The Social Work Division at Strong Memorial Hospital and Golisano Children’s Hospital is excited to expand its reach by bringing much needed support and resources to patients in our community through our partnership with Mt. Hope Family Center, says Mardy Sandler, director of the Social Work Division.
“BHComm offers broad outreach to an underserved, perinatal population at a time when patients are most inclined to seek help and support as they prepare to deliver and receive a new baby,” Sandler says. “This critical timing of service integrated with the healthcare team has potential to optimally impact maternal and newborn outcomes, secure essential resources for a safe and nurturing environment and respond effectively to perinatal behavioral health conditions.”
The BHComm program is a free pregnancy support program for expecting parents in Monroe County. Through a partnership with the New York State Office of Children and Family Services, BHComm coordinates referrals with URMC’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and URMC’s Department of Pediatrics to screen, evaluate, and provide various levels of service to pregnant women and new families within the URMC system and beyond.
BHComm is positioned to focus additional outreach and services in high-need zip codes to address persistent disparities in maternal and infant health and mortality across the community. Along with direct services, BHComm will launch community-wide awareness and prevention efforts designed for parents, healthcare providers, practitioners, and the general public. These campaigns will promote healthy parenting, early help-seeking, and stronger connections between families and local resources.
Elected officials applaud the initiative to improve maternal, infant, and community health outcomes.
Monroe County Executive Adam Bello: “Nothing is more fundamental to a community’s well-being than the health of our families. For years, the Mt. Hope Family Center has been a lifeline for thousands of parents, meeting new moms and dads where they are and delivering comprehensive, wraparound support both before and after pregnancy. This proven model has changed Monroe County families for the better, and we are proud to invest American Rescue Plan funding to expand its reach and impact across our community.”
Congressman Joe Morelle: “Every mother deserves access to quality care, and every child deserves a healthy start in life. I’m proud to have secured this federal funding to help ensure more mothers and babies in our community get the support they need to thrive. I’m grateful to all our partners in this effort, including URMC and the Mt. Home Family Center, and I look forward to our continued work together.”
US Senator Charles Schumer: “Mt. Hope Family Center and UR Medicine are doing the kind of smart, community-based work that helps mothers and babies get healthier starts and helps families get stronger support when they need it most. That is why I fought to deliver funding through the American Rescue Plan so Monroe County’s leading health institutions could expand programs that improve maternal and infant health outcomes and help close longstanding disparities in care. This $1.7 million investment will help Mt. Hope Family Center’s Building Healthy Communities program build on URochester’s vital clinical and community partnerships to expand outreach, strengthen care connections, and better support expecting parents, new mothers, and infants across Monroe County.”

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