Outreach program supports mental health of New Haven mothers

The New Haven Mental Outreach for Mothers (MOMS) Partnership, a coordinated effort by the medical school’s Department of Psychiatry, the city of New Haven, and New Haven mothers, was conceived in 2010, when Megan V. Smith, Dr.P.H., recognized that there was an unmet mental health need among mothers in New Haven.

With a network of 513 mothers living in New Haven, the New Haven MOMS Partnership works to meet complex needs of mothers who may be struggling with mental health issues. Now, the program is able to expand its reach thanks to a $2.5 million award from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office on Women’s Health. New Haven mothers who have been trained in research methods and mental health outreach will conduct workshops for mothers throughout the city. The grant will support the program’s work over the next five years.

“The program’s aim is to ensure the emotional health of the city’s families through the delivery of evidence-based mental health interventions in community settings,” says Smith, assistant professor of psychiatry and in the Child Study Center and principal investigator on the grant.

The New Haven MOMS Partnership consists of the Clifford Beers Child Guidance Clinic, New Haven Healthy Start, the New Haven Health Department, All Our Kin, the Diaper Bank, the state of Connecticut Department of Children and Families, and the Housing Authority of New Haven. The MOMS Partnership’s advisory committee includes more than 40 state and local leaders.