Primary Maternity Care
Better care starts with better systems
Maternity care needs a new foundation
Across the U.S., workforce shortages, maternity unit closures, persistent disparities, and fragmented care are reshaping how and where families receive care. We need new systems, rooted in communities and designed for this new reality.
PMC makes better systems possible.
Across the U.S., workforce shortages, maternity unit closures, persistent disparities, and fragmented care are reshaping how and where families receive care. We need systems designed for this new reality.
What is primary maternity care?
primary /ˈprīˌmerē/ adjective
1. First.
2. Most important.
3. Fundamental.
Primary maternity care is an organizing principle for how maternity care systems should work.
It means comprehensive, person-centered care right from the start—supporting health, preventing complications, assessing risk as needs change, and providing continuity throughout pregnancy, birth, postpartum, and the early newborn period. And it connects that foundation to the full range of clinical, behavioral health, public health, community, emergency, and specialty services families may need.
Where should we begin?
Primary maternity care asks us to rethink what we put at the center of the maternity care system:
1. What comes first?
What services and structures should form the first line of support for pregnancy, birth, and beyond?
2. What’s most important?
What services matter most for healthy, safe, and positive maternity care?
1. What comes fundamental?
What principles should guide how care is organized, financed, and delivered?
The goal is a maternity care system in which people can get the care they need close to home whenever possible, and move safely and seamlessly across providers, settings, and levels of care as their needs change.
What we do
Turn ideas into action
PMC works with healthcare organizations, public agencies, payers, and community partners to design and implement practical solutions for better maternity care. Our work ranges from integrating birth centers and doulas into healthcare systems, to improving quality and coordination across settings, to strengthening the financial sustainability of community-based care. We develop tools and programs, provide technical assistance, and help partners put new approaches into practice.
Our flagship initiative: Step Up Together®
Step Up Together brings together community-based providers, hospitals, EMS, and other partners to improve coordination, emergency readiness, and quality across levels and locations of care. Through interdisciplinary simulation, quality improvement collaboratives, training, and practical tools, Step Up Together helps local teams build stronger systems for safe, coordinated care.
Our Clients and Funding Partners
Meaningful change requires collaboration across the whole maternity care system. PMC works across organizational boundaries to tackle challenges that no single part of the system can solve alone.