Can housing be health care? A research project that's expanding to Dayton is aiming to prove that case.
Ohio has some of the worst outcomes for infant mortality in the U.S. But a research project expanding to the Dayton area is aiming to save lives by helping more pregnant women find housing.
The Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio, which advocates on housing issues, is behind the Healthy Beginnings at Home program, studying the connection between housing stability and healthy birth outcomes across the state.
Working with the Greater Dayton Area Hospital Association, they aim to launch the local version of the program this spring.
"I think a lot of people understand and support the notion and the impact that housing can have on birth outcomes. But I think being able to give the data along with that is really important," said Lisa Henderson, who leads the hospital association's initiatives.
The research model
The Dayton project can be traced back to a 2017 reportby the Ohio Housing Finance Agency. The report showed the largest growing population of people experiencing homelessness was actually children under the age of five.
This prompted a research study with 50 pregnant people in Columbus with unstable housing and Medicaid coverage. The research looked at whether the pregnant people would have better birth outcomes if they received rental assistance and support from a housing support specialist.
The initial study showed that people who received the housing support were most likely to have a healthy, full term, healthy birth weight baby and that their babies were 60% less likely to need any time in the NICU.
The study also found that housing support also reduced racial disparities in health outcomes and lowered Medicaid spending.
Replication in Montgomery County
In Montgomery County, where the research program is expanding, infant mortality has been a public health crisis for decades.
From 2017 to 2021, an average of eight babies died out of every 1,000 live births. The data also shows persistent racial disparities, with Black babies 2.4 times more likely to die than white babies during that time period.
This spring, the Healthy Beginnings at Home pilot project will support 30 pregnant people and their families facing unstable housing in Montgomery county with combined maternal care and housing services.
Amy Riegel, the executive director of COHHIO, said the streamlined services would help address the disparities and lower the risks that pregnant women living in poverty face.
“We are hoping that if there is a connection between housing assistance and healthy birth outcomes, that it will create an environment where women who are pregnant and are facing housing instability would have a more integrated path of receiving services that addresses their needs holistically so that they and their babies can thrive,” Riegel said.
Henderson said although safe, stable housing is a key intervention in the program, there are a lot of wraparound services needed to lower the risks.
“These pregnant people likely need a lot of other supportive services. So whether that's if they are looking for supplies for their baby or they need a maternal health provider looking for an ObGyn, this program is really a community effort,” Henderson said.
The project has an initial duration of two years and the families will be enrolled for six months at a time.
