Closing Gaps in Maternal Mental Healthcare
The Policy Center for Maternal Mental Health is a national think tank, nonprofit organization advancing policies that support a health care system that routinely detects and treats maternal mental health disorders for every mother, every time.
2020 Mom champions a new bill calling for the formation of a federal interdepartmental maternal mental health task force and strategic plan to identify opportunities, coordinate resources, and build upon programs to improve the well-being of mothers.
Read MoreToday we are pleased to unveil our annual impact report.
Highlights include:
Hosting the 10th Maternal Mental Health FORUM, a 2-day event held in L.A. and webcast across the country, bringing together 650 cross-sector change agents and inspiring change.
Releasing the ‘State of the State Report’ which identified gaps that have been closed and have yet to be closed in Maternal Mental Health.
This year, like in years’ past, we accomplished a lot on a dime:
We had our biggest audience and most powerful speakers yet at the Maternal Mental Health FORUM, where cross-sector change agents convene to learn and get inspired
We launched the State Policy Fellows Program to drive state policy change nationally
We supported moms in navigating complex insurance denials
We pivoted from holding a 3-day Mom Congress event to building an on-line membership platform for Mom Congress change-makers and going deep to lift up urgent child care policy needs given the COVID crisis
We can’t produce pathways for change like this without your support.
Read MoreCarole Mendoza, benefits/HR executive, to serve as Chairperson; Kobi Ajayi, graduate research assistant, to serve as Secretary, leading 2020 Mom into its second decade.
Read MoreI founded 2020 Mom 9 years ago this month, because my worlds collided:
- I lost my little brother to suicide. This happened while I worked in the healthcare system and led quality management accreditation for Cigna Behavioral Health. I tried desperately to figure out the mental health system and how to get him help. It didn't work.
Read MorePerigee Fund Invests in 2020 Mom, Executive Director to Depart Cigna
LOS ANGELES, Calif., July 29, 2020 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) -- 2020 Mom has been awarded a significant multi-year capacity investment by the Perigee Fund, a philanthropic organization focused in supporting early parenting, so families can thrive.
Effective August 1, 2020 Mom’s Board of Directors is pleased to hire Joy Burkhard, MBA, the organization’s founder, as its full-time Executive Director. Joy will be departing Cigna after nearly 25 years, where she has held leadership roles in supporting regulatory compliance and quality improvement efforts.
Read MoreWashington, DC – In May, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) announced that Joy Burkhard, MBA was selected to serve as an expert advisor for their Cross-Sectional Innovation to Improve Rural Postpartum Mental Health Challenge.
The challenge aims to drive both proposal and narrative submissions, allowing the initiative to highlight success stories in rural postpartum mental health and encourage future innovative approaches.
Read MoreI’m writing this post, 8 years to the day of when I convened our first call with stakeholders (learn more about why this first call was held, and why I raised my hand to lead it, on the video at the top of our About 2020 Mom page.)
I heard over and over again that providers needed more training, and universal screening was a must. This made sense, though what I wanted to understand was why women weren’t already being screened, diagnosed and treated.
I began my quest for knowledge. I combed through research (which was difficult to consolidate, and often contradictory) and struggled to find answers.
Read MoreWow, 2018!
I'm pleased to share our 2018 Impact Report infographic and some of our 2018 highlights below.
If you have followed our work, you know our most celebrated accomplishment was our sponsorship and the passage of three pieces of key maternal mental health legislation. These bills made up the most comprehensive MMH legislative package ever.
Kate’s story:
GLOUCESTER COUNTY, NJ - I am a mom, a wife, a business-owner, an advocate. I am trained as a therapist (professional counselor) and my expertise is maternal mental health. I am driven by the desire to walk the journey with mothers as they rediscover themselves as their young families grow. Maternal mental health is directly linked to child mental health, children grow up to be adults. Start with moms seems like the best place to start if we want to make the world a better place.
Read MoreApple’s story:
LOS ANGELES, CA - I am a pediatric occupational therapist and a Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar, a wife and a child and family advocate. As a pediatric occupational therapist, I am an advocate for children and families. Their vulnerability subjects them to circumstances outside of their choosing or control, and their experiences can have a lasting impact on their lives as well as on the generations after them.
Read MoreRobin’s story:
I knew I wanted to work with children and families since I was 15 years old. I have fulfilled this goal in many different roles over my career as a social worker. I have been in search of a “life’s work” for many years and I have found it in maternal mental health. I have made a commitment to myself that I will do this work for the rest of my life in some capacity. There is so much needless suffering that would not occur if moms were better educated and stigma was less. My drive comes . . .
Read MoreBridget’s story:
As a nurse and midwife, I have been passionate about helping moms and babies for as long as I can remember. I am currently a PhD student at Yale School of Nursing with a focus on maternal mental health and illness, and I am a Robert Wood Johnson Future of Nursing Scholar. I believe that healthy mother-child dyads are foundational to healthy communities and key to making the world a better place.
Read MoreElyse’s story:
LOS ANGELES, CA - Long before working in perinatal mental health, I was a clinician working with trauma - but because therapists and clinicians aren't regularly trained in maternal mental health, I was completely unaware and unprepared for the wallop of postpartum PTSD following the emergency c-section of my first child. Unfortunately, none of my care providers had MMH training themselves, and it took a lot of tears and my own research to figure out . . .
Read MoreRupa’s story:
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA - I am a first generation South Asian female clinical psychologist. I believe in providing people with effective evidence-based treatments. I also believe in suicide prevention and intervention and helping educate and connect individuals at risk for MMH problems with resources that empower them . . .
Read MoreAlinne’s story:
BAY AREA, CA - I am a mom, wife, daughter, and sister. I grew up surrounded by strong, independent women who were able to find success (broadly defined) despite adversity. Through my work as a clinical psychologist I’ve heard and experienced countless stories of sacrifice.
Read MoreCarole’s story:
I’m a wife, mother, friend, and leader. I’m very blessed, but I’ve had my share of difficult times, too. I’m moved to help people who need support and don’t have the resources they need.
Read MoreJohn's story:
ST LOUIS, MO - Meet John, a 2020 Mom Board Member, and learn why John is moved to be a part of change in maternal mental health.
My name is John Smith. (The adventures I can tell you about my namesake are legendary.) I'm pleased to be serving as a new board member for 2020 Mom.
Read More