Dear Communities and Partners,



Spring is blooming and we’re excited for all that is ahead. 

As we continue to work on the MCH needs assessment, we’ve had so many opportunities to connect with and learn from incredible organizations and partners over the last few months. Our team completed 26 interviews or group discussions since January. We are grateful to everyone who has participated and shared their unique expertise and perspectives with us. Results from these discussions will be incorporated into our final report, and what we learned in this phase will inform our needs assessment and eventual priorities.



Soon we will be moving into community and family engagement efforts for the assessment. This will give us a chance to hear from residents about their needs and experiences. We look forward to sharing more about these opportunities in the near future.

In this issue, you’ll find:

• MCH quarterly highlight - subrecipient spotlight
• Epidemiology and program updates
• Other news and announcements, to include legislative updates, Medicaid postpartum extension information, and more

You can always reach me at feliciana.turner@wyo.gov. 

Feliciana Turner

Maternal and Child Health Unit Manager

Title V Director

MCH Quarterly Highlights

Subrecipient Spotlight: Hoskinson Health and Wellness Clinic, LLC - Gillette, Wyoming 



The Hoskinson Health and Wellness Clinic (HHWC) is a recipient of the 2023 Title V Women and Infant Health funding opportunity. HHWC’s project is a community health communication program that encourages infant safe sleep practices for parents of infants 0-12 months residing in Wyoming. The program provides improved healthcare access and social support via an established Hoskinson Community Health Coalition (CHC) and disseminates infant safe sleep information through multiple means, such as

• books and checklists distributed to parents during pediatric healthcare clinic visits;
• clinic waiting room video monitor streaming; 
• online information and checklists via links to the HHWC website; and 
• social media outlets. 

Their program officially launched on March 15, 2024.

PRAMS



The Wyoming PRAMS Team recently started a new PRAMS-focused data series called Quarterly Snapshots. The first Quarterly Snapshot highlights High Blood Pressure Before and During Pregnancy (link). In March, the Wyoming PRAMS team attended the Laramie County Community Cares Event and connected with other public health-orientated organizations in Laramie County. If you would like to learn more about Wyoming PRAMS or view the new logo, please visit our website. If you would like to be involved in the Wyoming PRAMS Steering Committee or have any questions about Wyoming PRAMS, including the rebranding or the dashboard update, please reach out to wdh-wyprams@wyo.gov.

MCH Program Updates

Child Health and Children and Youth with Special Healthcare Needs (CYSHCN) Program



The response to the Child Health Program’s Request for Application was overwhelming! We received over 60 applications totaling close to $1 million dollars in requested funds. We’re happy to either fully or partially fund multiple applications to increase physical activity among children. Existing and future funding opportunities for MCH programs are listed on the funding opportunities website https://health.wyo.gov/publichealth/mch/mch-funding-opportunities/.

Women and Infant Health Program



The Women and Infant Health Program (WIHP) is happy to share that the 2024 Title V Funding Proposal Request for Applications has now officially closed as of March 31. We want to thank all who applied and look forward to scoring all the applications we received. So far it looks like we received many amazing community applications that focus on infant safe sleep, increasing annual visits for women, and tobacco cessation during pregnancy or postpartum.

WIHP has hired a Wyoming Perinatal Quality Collaborative (WyPQC) Coordinator. This position will work to encourage and support the implementation of Quality Improvement projects at hospitals that have a perinatal focus. There will be many great changes to the WyPQC in the future, including better support for hospitals and funding opportunities to help them implement projects, watch the MCH funding page for any funding announcements. 

The Maternal Mortality Review Committee is looking for passionate members. Open positions include law enforcement, midwifery professionals, Department of Family Services, rural community advocate, and many more. If you are passionate about preventing maternal mortality please check out all the other open slots and consider filling out the application on our Maternal Mortality Review Committee website.

Youth and Young Adult Health Program



The Youth and Young Adult Health Program (YAYAHP) is hosting a Sources of Strength train-the-trainer for schools from August 5-8. Registration will open soon. We are also co-hosting suicide postvention train-the-trainer in August with NAMI Wyoming, and plan to make suicide postvention more widely available to K-12 schools and communities starting this fall.

Legislative Updates



There were bills passed in the 2024 session that will benefit families that we’d like to highlight:

• HB0126: Child care is a residential use of property - this bill’s aim is to improve access to early childhood care and education. Supporting access to childcare benefits children and their parents, particularly mothers, by allowing them to participate in workforce and educational opportunities
• SF0019: Developmental preschool funding - this bill increased the per-child funding for developmental preschools. This should support high-quality services and reduce financial burdens for these preschools.
• Appropriations: 
• $10 million to address mental health needs of K-12 students
• Ongoing funding for 988 crisis line operations, including $10 million to establish a trust fund account

Medicaid Postpartum Extension



Since July 1, 2023, postpartum Wyoming Medicaid coverage has been extended from 60 days to 12 months. Extended coverage may improve access to healthcare and reduce postpartum morbidity.

Coverage is not limited to pregnancy-related or postpartum-specific care. It offers full medical coverage for people within the year following delivery. This means that postpartum people enrolled in Medicaid can seek preventive care, as well as care to manage or treat health conditions

More information about Wyoming Medicaid can be found online at health.wyo.gov/healthcarefin/medicaid

Adverse Childhood Experience and Epigenetics Webinar and Protective Factors Conversation Guides

April 9, 2024, 9 - 10 am MT

This webinar is hosted by the Wyoming Children’s Trust Fund

Zoom Meeting ID: 827 7070 4837

Passcode: FRCC

A related resource - Protective Factors Conversation Guides - helps service providers engage caregivers in conversations about protective factors.

Syphilis Testing is Essential for All Pregnant Women

Unfortunately, in 2023 Wyoming reported congenital syphilis for the first time in many years. 

There are often no symptoms associated with syphilis infection. Untreated syphilis can cause major health issues including death in both patients and unborn children. 

Up to 40% of babies born to women with untreated syphilis may be stillborn, or die from the infection as a newborn. This is preventable with appropriate testing and treatment. 

Providers should test all pregnant women for syphilis as soon as possible after pregnancy is confirmed. Repeat testing should be provided to pregnant women throughout the duration of the pregnancy if any of the following apply to the patient or their partner(s):

• Patient or partner have other sexual partners
• Use of injection or intranasal drugs
• Unprofessional or homemade tattoo(s) or piercing(s)

Screening recommendations for pregnant women and testing algorithms can be found at https://health.wyo.gov/.../health-professional-resources/.

The Communicable Disease Unit currently recommends testing all sexually active individuals for syphilis. Frequency of testing is based on the individual risk of each patient. In general, test two weeks after each new partner (or exposure) or every 1-3 months for frequent partners or exposures. Having sex without a condom, multiple sex partners, anonymous sex partners or drug use are risks connected with the recent increase in syphilis. Patients who are a contact to syphilis may initially test negative however there are some cases where treatment may be indicated. Wyoming’s specific STI testing recommendations are based on risk and can be found online at https://health.wyo.gov/publichealth/communicable-disease-unit/sexually-transmitted-disease/health-professional-resources/.

To find low or no-cost testing sites in Wyoming or at-home testing options go to www.KnoWyo.org.

Practical Playbook III: Working Together to Improve Maternal Health

Repost from the HRSA Partners in Progress February 28 Newsletter

The Maternal Health Learning and Innovation Center, funded by MCHB, joined forces with the de Beaumont Foundation on this third volume in the de Beaumont Foundation's Practical Playbook collection. 

This is a first-of-its-kind guide for practitioners, researchers, community activists, and advocates of maternal health, offering a collection of practical tools and strategies from across the country to improve inequities in maternal health. A key focus of the book is to encourage collaboration across sectors to address the multifaceted challenges in maternal health.