The Preeclampsia Foundation announced today that Merck for Mothers has awarded new funding for its program, MoMMAs Voices, a national coalition of patient advocacy organizations and individuals with "lived experience" – or those that represent them. Merck for Mothers is Merck’s global initiative to help create a world where no woman has to die while giving life.

With this new grant, MoMMAs Voices is preparing to engage hundreds of new patient and family partners (PFPs) across the U.S. in 2022. This program teaches both advocates and providers how to use the Lived Experience Integration™ framework to engage as partners wherever maternal health improvements are needed.

How the Lived Experience Integration™ and sharing of personal stories is making an impact:

• Leads to a more focused commitment by quality improvement teams
• Creates a culture of trust and acceptance between patients, families and providers
• Reveals new solutions and insights through patient perspectives
• Identifies confusing or missing pieces of processes
• Assists in developing action plans and recommendations
• Contributes to the content and design of materials
• Pilots and tests new materials and processes
• Expands research participation and information collection

The U.S. continues to face a maternal mortality crisis. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), at least 60% of these deaths are preventable. Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) are disproportionately affected. MoMMAs Voices is providing grant writing, execution, and reporting support specifically for BIPOC led organizations to build capacity to address this head-on. This effort will aim to increase BIPOC representation as patient and family partners nationwide.

“MoMMAs Voices breaks down silos between maternal health organizations to amplify lived patient experiences that represent the voices of the women and their families affected by maternal health conditions,” said Eleni Tsigas, chief executive officer of the Preeclampsia Foundation. “The continued funding of our patient-centric work ensures patients continue to have a role in addressing the U.S. maternal health crisis.”

About MoMMAs Voices

MoMMAs (Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Advocates) Voices is the first-ever maternal health patient advocacy coalition established in 2018, to amplify the voices of people who have experienced childbirth complications or loss - especially those who have been historically marginalized - ensuring they are equipped and activated as partners with providers and researchers to improve maternal health outcomes. This is a program of the Preeclampsia Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, and is supported by a grant through Merck for Mothers. For more information, visit www.mommasvoices.org and preeclampsia.org.