Campaign Overview
- Goal: Raise awareness of Black maternal health disparities, position the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) as a committed partner in advancing health equity, and encourage use of the National Maternal Health Hotline.
- Audience: Public health professionals, advocates, and organizations at federal, state, and local levels.
Key Takeaways
- Community-centered approach: Prioritized lived experience by involving participants directly in campaign development.
- Multi-modal strategy: Combined video storytelling, written narratives, downloadable resources, and a live webinar for maximum engagement.
- Partnership model: Created practical tools enabling organizations to adapt and amplify messaging within their own networks.
- Measurable success: Campaign webpage became the most-visited section of the site during Black Maternal Health Week, with hundreds of toolkit downloads.
- Recognition: Received HRSA Award for Innovation.
Campaign Evolution
2023: Building the Foundation
HRSA's inaugural Black Maternal Health Week campaign focused on doula care and its impact on maternal health outcomes. The approach centered on authentic storytelling through user-generated video content and a partner photo contest that engaged the broader community in visual narrative-building. We gathered metrics across web and social media as well as stakeholder feedback to inform the next iteration of the campaign in 2024.
2024: Expanding Impact
The second year marked a significant expansion with a comprehensive, multi-channel approach that set new standards for HRSA's public health campaigns. The Vice President’s Office, HHS, HUD, state public health agencies, and community-based organizations engaged in the social media campaign.
Core Content: Four two-minute video vignettes, each paired with written stories:
- Research excellence in maternal health
- Healthy Start Program community impact, featuring the importance of fatherhood
- Home Visiting Services and personalized care
- Maternal Mental Health Hotline, featuring a personal postpartum depression journey
Innovation: Comprehensive Partnership Toolkit. For the first time, HRSA developed downloadable resources that partners could customize:
- Graphic cards
- Adaptable social media messaging
- Newsletter content templates
- Implementation guidance for community organizations
Centering Lived Experience
A defining element of the 2024 campaign was bringing story participants into a pre-launch meeting with HRSA staff. This approach went beyond featuring people’s experiences—it demonstrated genuine partnership and respect for the communities being served. The meeting allowed participants to connect directly with staff while showing institutional commitment to community-centered work.
Results and Recognition
The campaign’s dedicated webpage, Strengthening Black Maternal Health, became the most-visited section of HRSA’s Maternal and Child Health Bureau website during Black Maternal Health Week. The multi-platform promotion strategy created multiple engagement opportunities across social media, newsletters, speaking events, and an HRSA-hosted webinar, Unlocking the Future of Maternal Health Begins with Research.
Date last updated:
August 2025