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Modern Collective Care (MC2)

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References: 

Clapp, M. A., Little, S. E., Zheng, J., & Robinson, J. N. (2016). A multi-state analysis of postpartum readmissions in the United States. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, 215(1), 113.e1-113.e10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajog.2016.01.174

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Fleming, T. P., Watkins, A. J., Velazquez, M. A., Mathers, J. C., Prentice, A. M., Stephenson, J., Barker, M., Saffery, R., Yajnik, C. S., Eckert, J. J., Hanson, M. A., Forrester, T., Gluckman, P. D., & Godfrey, K. M. (2018). Origins of lifetime health around the time of conception: causes and consequences. The Lancet, 391(10132), 1842–1852. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(18)30312-x

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Homepage - Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (2025, January 27). Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. https://developingchild.harvard.edu/

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Huang, H., Shu, N., Mishra, V., Jeon, T., Chalak, L., Wang, Z. J., Rollins, N., Gong, G., Cheng, H., Peng, Y., Dong, Q., & He, Y. (2013). Development of human brain structural networks through infancy and childhood. Cerebral Cortex, 25(5), 1389–1404. https://doi.org/10.1093/cercor/bht335

 

Joseph, R. (2000). Fetal brain behavior and cognitive development. Developmental Review, 20(1), 81–98. https://doi.org/10.1006/drev.1999.0486

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McEwen, B. S. (2003). Early life influences on life‐long patterns of behavior and health. Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Research Reviews, 9(3), 149–154. https://doi.org/10.1002/mrdd.10074

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Sonenberg, A., & Mason, D. J. (2023). Maternity care deserts in the US. JAMA Health Forum, 4(1), e225541. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamahealthforum.2022.5541

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The MC 2 integrative and community-based approach delivers these lifelong individual and societal benefits by structuring itself around contemporary childhood developmental science and best practices.

 

External evaluation will take place by consultant who specializes in non-profit success

Modern Collective Care will measure the success of its impact strategy using KPIs aligned with objective health and child development outcomes.

 

1. On-track percentage for quarterly age-appropriate holistic developmental milestone evaluations administered, compared against population averages (leading)

2. Rate of application of mely developmental and health interventions (lagging)

3. Incidence rate of common parental health problems and stressors associated with post-partum and child-rearing period, compared against population averages (lagging)

4. Participation rate in parent-focused programs, educational content and retreats (leading)

5. Program graduate composite ACE and psychological evaluation scores, compared against population averages (lagging)

A summative evaluation will be completed annually to reflect on practices and ensure ideal measures are being made to maintain commitment to high-quality preventative community care.

 

 

 

Quick Write Reflective Response:

Within our current relationship network, we have strong interest in our services and are confident we will meet and exceed our Y1 client and partner acquisition targets. As we scale up from our known community to new families in our market, we will deploy the following marketing strategies:

 

Collateral: Launch a sophisticated, user-friendly website with compelling content that showcases our services and also embeds latest SEO practices to ensure our web visibility. Offer high-quality marketing brochures and videos that describe our unique nature and offerings.

 

Social Media: Build an Instagram platform with high-quality visuals of our program practices and principles aimed at our target market. Join and actively participate in exclusive parenting groups on social media platforms.

 

Communications: Implement a robust email marketing campaign to nurture leads and provide valuable, personalized content to prospective clients. Use a customer relationship management (CRM) system to track interactions and preferences of prospective families,

 

Exclusive Events and Partnerships: Host invitation-only events such as open houses or educational seminars featuring renowned childcare experts.

 

Referrals: Implement a referral program with appropriate incentives and recognition for existing clients who refer new families.

 

Thought leadership: Establish MC 2 as a thought leader in our space by contributing articles to parenting magazines and speaking at exclusive conferences.

 

Outbound: Reach prospective clients via partnerships with a leading-edge lead generation firm to create targeted outreach and conversions to our sales team.

Comprehensive family care empowering the generations to come

 

Statement of problem

Language and cognitive development delays impacting breadth and depth of vocabulary and executive function skills which were discovered as early as 18 months old, point to delays related to a lack of consistent responsive caregiver(s) (McGovern Institute, (2018). In the United States a poll taken resulted in 87 percent of youth reported they had an ongoing mental health problem and anxiety was the most significant finding where 58 percent of youth expressed they were suffering from a related anxiety disorder (Statista, (2023b).

Maternal mortality in the U.S. out of 38 industrialized nations placed 33rd, further exploiting the desperate call to review antecedent family conditions and behaviors, (Romeo, (2018). The Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in the year 2021 revealed the U.S. 33rd of 36 in relation to infant mortality (America’s Health Rankings | AHR). Infant Mortality rates continue to rise and remain most significant for black infants who in the year 2022 accounted for 10.9% of every 1000 births (Ely & Driscoll, (2024). Providing mothers with access to a doula can lead to healthier birth weights and increase chances for mothers to have a successful breastfeeding journey. A Doula can build the mother’s self-confidence through the process of modeling and teaching the mother to self-advocate and empower the belief that the mother is capable of doing hard things such as labor and feeding a newborn (Gruber et al., 2013).

Following birth, 90% of mothers hope to breastfeed their newborn baby yet a lack of support leads women into a perilous journey where only 16% of mothers receive enough community support to go past two months in postpartum breastfeeding (Renner, 2015). The lack of emphasis and access in the U.S. to preventive health measures, resources, and high-quality responsive care, connects and often leads to health challenges (Romeo, 2018). Research continues to show the crucial need and power of strong and responsive maternal and paternal bonding, for child development (Ormrod, 2020). Early assessments in Perinatal Mental Health Disorders lead to preventative care and stop unnecessary suffering.

 

Discussion of the need for change

In the year 2023, the United States (U.S.) had 3,591,328 births (Center for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2024). Locally, King, Pierce and Kitsap Counties in Washington State, shared between them in 2022, 30,000 births (WA Dept. of Health). Childcare in the U.S. is about a $61.70 billion enterprise and is projected to continue to grow at over five percent compound annual growth rate over the next semi decade. The largest childcare revenue is ages zero to five enrolled in home-based, commercial, non-profit, and privately run education centers and currently accounts for nearly half the overall U.S. childcare market revenue. (Grandview Research, 2024). ).

            A $160 billion market is revealed in maternal and infant care, and parents in the U.S. experience holes in family care leading to developmental and behavioral differences (Goodkind, N., (2022). By not connecting the siloed resources for preventive prenatal, postpartum, and mental health care, a study completed in the U.S. revealed a waste of tax payer dollars in the amount of $27.2 billion to $78.2 billion related to a failure of coordinated care (Shrank et al., 2019). Beyond basic medical services, access to available comprehensive prenatal, maternal, pediatric and parental health and wellness programs is extremely fragmented (BPC, (2019),. Early childhood services that incorporate comprehensive family health measures are rare and not well funded according to BPC, (2019). The business and advocacy model presented in this sheet fits squarely in a prominent gap in the market, by responding to recognized weaknesses in family health outcomes and supplies an immersive early childhood learning approach that is gaining prominence in building language and literacy rates for children (BPC, (2019).

 

Description of two or more proposed solutions

Create a sustainable community beyond in-home and family-specific services. These could include a system of community campuses, providing early childhood education, family health, self-care, and mental wellness services, as well as regular retreat-based learning and support—expert care from a full spectrum of modalities and dedicated, experienced educators. By supporting families in a thriving ecosystem through a collaborative, collective, and educational approach.

This advocacy plan provides access to scaffolding support for all, cultivating child and their parents to engage in learning and skill-building exercises with curriculum that emphasizes intrinsic motivation, critical-thinking skills, and shapes a commitment to learning. The service offerings will cover collective family health and educational needs from birth to third grade, including Planning, Baby, Mind, Body, Family, and Learning.

List of organizations and key individuals in support of these solutions

  • Postpartum Support International is the preferred institution to support perinatal mental health support training and group services., This is the instruction where all personnel serving Modern Collective Care families will be provided an opportunity to become a PEriantal Mental Health Provider (PMH-C).

  • Brandi Moore M.Ed., School Counselor, Kent Prairie Elementary, President of Modern Collective Care, She will oversee support with connecting resournces and building individual educational and family plans

  • Amber Englund LMHC, Secretary for Modern Collective Care Board and she will oversee assessments and individual child mental health support mainly tele health

  • Debbie Licker LMHC, Vice President of Modern Collective Care Board she will oversee direction of retreats for family and professionals 

  • Donald Summers, consultant to support non profit and social enterprise success

  • Aaron Everett, consultant to support non profit and social enterprise success

  • Kate Reddy non-profit lawyer

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Likely outcomes if the proposed solutions are implemented

Reversing the trends in the rate of infants, maternal and familial perinatal health problems, and childhood developmental deficiencies by creating accessible community care, built of collective systems of expert led modalities extended to entire family. By engaging with a full-service care model prevalent language and literacy gaps in child development are bridged successfully and entirely (McGovern Institute, 2018. The One-on-one immersive and experiential early childhood education programs offered at Modern Collectve Care, offer value by children and families to explore an everchanging landscapes and also providing access to wisdom-sharing opportunities through spiritual retreats and storytelling. This advocacy plan will be funded mostly by philanthropic investors which will drive revenue for broader community participation.

What is the likely outcome if proposals not implemented?

If the proposal is not implemented, we will continue to see mental health problems increase, disparities with language and literacy widen, and inequality related to critical thinking skills will also widen.

 

References

America’s Health Rankings | AHR. (n.d.). America’s Health Rankings. https://www.americashealthrankings.org/learn/reports/2023-annual-report/international-comparison

BPC, (2019), History of Federal Funding For Child Care and Early Learning, Bipartisan Policy Center, October, 2019, bipartisanpolicy.org/download/?file=/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/WEB_BPC_ECH-History-Brief_R01.pdf

Goodkind, N., (2022). CNN Business The United States is in a maternal health crisis, Goldman  Sachs wants to change that. https://www.cnn.com/2022/05/08/business/mahmee-goldman-sachs-maternal-health/index.html

Ely, D. M., & Driscoll, A. K. (2024). Infant mortality in the United States, 2022: Data from the Period Linked Birth/infant Death File. Cdc. https://doi.org/10.15620/cdc/157006

 

Gruber, K. J., Cupito, S. H., & Dobson, C. F. (2013). Impact of doulas on healthy birth outcomes. The Journal of Perinatal Education, 22(1), 49–58. https://doi.org/10.1891/1058-1243.22.1.49

Karoly, L. A., Kilburn, M. R., & Cannon, J. S. (2005, October 18). Early childhood interventions: proven results, future promise. RAND. https://www.rand.org/pubs/monographs/MG341.html

Loo TM, Altman M, Bravata DM, Whaley C. Medical Spending Among US Households With Children With a Mental Health Condition Between 2017 and 2021. JAMA Netw Open. 2024;7(3):e241860. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.1860

McGovern Institute. (2018) Beyond the 30 million word gap. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNJQGbNbI-8

Ormrod, J. E. (2020). Human Learning, 8th ed. New York, NY: Pearson.

Renner, E. (Director). (2015). The Beginning of Life [Film]. Maria Farinha Filmes. 

Romeo, R. (2018). Webinar: Beyond the 30 million word gap: A conversation with Rachel Romeo. LENA.

Shrank, W. H., Rogstad, T. L., & Parekh, N. (2019). Waste in the US health care system. JAMA, 322(15), 1501. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2019.13978

Statista. (2023, November 29). Leading mental health challenges reported among U.S. youth 2023, by type. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1412704/mental-health-challenges-among-us-youth-by-type/#:~:text=A%202023%20survey%20conducted%20in,problem%20on%20a%20regular%20basis

Advocacy Journal Prompts

Chapter 1: 02/14/2025

  1. What is behind your motivation for child advocacy? It may be helpful to close your eyes and imagine the image, story, news, or other source that first sparked your interest in child advocacy.​

The U.S. ranks 33rd out of 38 developed nations in maternal mortality, a preventable tragedy that underscores the need for accessible prenatal planning and responsive care (Williams, D.) (Romeo, (2018). As of 2021, the U.S. ranks 33 out of 36 Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) nations with respect to infant mortality. The U.S. Center for Disease Control reports that the national infant mortality rate increased 3 percent between 2021 and 2022. Rates were highest per 1,000 births among black infants (10.9), followed by Native American/Alaska Natives (9.1), Native Hawiian/Pacific Islander (8.5), Hispanic (4.9), white (4.5) and Asian (3.5).

  1. What is the goal for your advocacy work? Is it something you can achieve in the short term, or is it a long-term goal?

Beginning at the family planning stage, programming that is built within a community of care provides parents and children with comprehensive services to reconnect all the critical facets of child and parental health.  Service offerings will cover  collective family health and educational needs extending from birth to third-grade, including: Planning, Baby, Mind, Body, Family, and Learning.

  1. What is the context for your advocacy work -- the local, regional (state), national, or international level?

Provide 1,000 families across 25 states with our integrative services by 2035.

  1. What types of challenges are you likely to encounter? What can you control about your advocacy work, and what will you have to let go of?

Sustainable funding and access to ensure high-quality care is maintained and cultivated.  Along the way people and major industries will take issue with what is happening as the influence will impact major revenue-generating areas. I will have to maintain my vision, not succumb to greed and stay steadfast in my value and belief in preventive care, health, and education for families.

  1. How will you persist in efforts towards your goal, despite inevitable challenges? What inspiration will keep you going?

Collaboration with people who are experts in their field and collaboration with community members from differing areas that can shape and build on to this vision collectively over time. Building relationships will take time and effort and this is a deep issue of a lack of love and people being uncared for over generations. The systemic reminisce will take lifetimes to evolve out of and the goal is to focus on building a bit more equity everyday.

  1. Do you prefer working alone or as part of a team? Where can you find others to collaborate on your advocacy goal?

Both are critical in creation and leading a vision collectively. Having collaboration followed by introspection out in nature are crucial steps in deepening awareness in next steps. The natural world guides us when we attune to it and I find the discovery made from disruption is the most powerful anchor point.

  1. What are your methods for self-care to avoid burnout?

I have a paid best friend and my husband and I see separately and together. My love for life and community stays alive by a peaceful place I am able to frequent with my husband and in silence alone wrapped around water, mountains and trees. The wild life is thrilling and reminds us to stay present and it the perfect place to set down the load of life and let nature nurture us to full health.

Advocacy Journal Prompts

Chapter: 02/23/2025

  1. Sketch out your initial ideas for an advocacy goal.

Our vision is to create a paradigm shift in child-rearing, health, and education systems through pioneering community campuses that develop social, mental, and physical health for comprehensive child and family development.

  1. How you might put that goal in concrete terms by developing objectives?

The first step in creating lasting change is awareness of the critical gaps in societal support and early childhood education. While these needs are widely recognized, comprehensive solutions remain rare. 

Committed to transforming the future of family health and childhood development with compassion, care, and community connection. We cultivate a nurturing environment where our community members develop a growth mindset,  self-efficacy, and stalwartness. 

Our unique approach nurtures parents and children to reach this unlimited potential by:

  • Creating a supportive, community-based system that provides proven, holistic interventions for the entire family's well-being

  • Bridging critical care gaps with a full-service model that ensures comprehensive family support

  • Offering personalized early childhood education and immersive retreats that foster growth, learning, and emotional resilience

  • Engaging community and philanthropic partners to expand access to high-quality support 

Together, we can rewrite the narrative on infant, maternal, and family health to build a future where every child and parent thrives.

 

  1. What activities would be necessary to achieve those results?

Our unique approach nurtures parents and children to reach this unlimited potential by:

  • Creating a supportive, community-based system that provides proven, holistic interventions for the entire family's well-being

  • Bridging critical care gaps with a full-service model that ensures comprehensive family support

  • Offering personalized early childhood education and immersive retreats that foster growth, learning, and emotional resilience

  • Engaging community and philanthropic partners to expand access to high-quality support 

Together, we can rewrite the narrative on infant, maternal, and family health to build a future where every child and parent thrives.

 

  1. Who might be able to partner with you on these activities?

Licensed Mental Health Therapist,  Perinatal Mental Health Providers, Seabeck Conference Center, State and National Parks,

  1. What is a reasonable time frame for conducting these activities?

A prototype will be created for professional staff to participate in late Spring with a commitment to releasing to the public by Fall 2026.

  1. How will you know through observable milestones that the objectives have been achieved?

    1. Business plan was complete December 2024

    2. Non profit Board finalized February 2025

    3. Filed articles of incorporation for the non profit February

    4. Open bank account for non profit capital to be received March 2025

    5. Complete platforms for website domains and finalize marketing efforts

  2. Will you need funding to carry out your activities? What would be the estimated cost?

$160K per family per year, for full access to all items

  1. If funding is needed, how could you find possible funding sources using the strategies described in previous sections of your text reading?

Social enterprise that is supported by a bespoke service offered to the 1-5% of philanthropic individuals and corporations. The proceeds will be donated to the non profit and provide scholarships and sliding scale to communities over time. Within 3 years this part of the program will be completed.

  1. What are you thoughts on how to evaluate whether your project has reached its goal

We will utilize Key Performance Indicators (KPI) to show services established, expenses tied to growth and development of program.

Advocary Journal Entry 3 

Draft an initial summary sheet that contains the following based on your Chapter 6 reading:

Modern Collective Care

  1. Statement of problem

Parents urgently need access to high-quality prenatal and postnatal support, meaningful developmental guidance, and resources to foster healthy, resilient children.

   Gaps in early childhood language and cognitive development, detectable as early as 18 months, are on the rise, with delays averaging six months (McGovern Institute, 2018).

   A 2023 survey conducted in the United States found that approximately 87 percent of young individuals had suffered from some mental health problem on a regular basis. The leading mental health challenge experienced by most youth respondents was anxiety, with 58 percent.

   As of 2021, the U.S. ranks 33 out of 36 Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) nations with respect to infant mortality.

   The U.S. Center for Disease Control reports that the national infant mortality rate increased by 3 percent between 2021 and 2022. Rates were highest per 1,000 births among black infants (10.9), followed by Native American/Alaska Natives (9.1), Native Hawiian/Pacific Islander (8.5), Hispanic (4.9), white (4.5) and Asian (3.5).

   While 90% of mothers express a desire to breastfeed, only 16% receive the support needed to continue beyond two months postpartum (Renner, 2015).

   The U.S. also faces a critical shortage of preventive health measures, resources, and high-quality responsive care, contributing to poor maternal and child health outcomes. (Romeo, 2018). Research indicates that strong maternal and paternal bonding, crucial for child development, is heavily influenced by supportive environments (Ormrod, 2020).

   Doula-assisted mothers were four times less likely to have a low birth weight (LBW) baby, two times less likely to experience a birth complication involving themselves or their baby, and significantly more likely to initiate breastfeeding.

  For the 80 percent of mothers who experience perinatal mental health stress, doulas can serve as an essential source of support. However, only six percent of births are paired with a doula.

 

  1. Discussion of the need for change

In 2023, there were 3,591,328 births in the  United States (  CDC, 2024  ). California, Texas,

 Florida and New York led the nation with over 200,000 births each (  CDC, 2024  ). In

initial core market area of King, Pierce and Kitsap Counties, there were

 more than 30,000 births in 2022 (  WA Dept. of Health  ).

 The U.S. childcare market size was estimated at $61.70 billion in 2023 and is expected to

 grow at a CAGR of 5.86% from 2024 to 2030. The early education & early daycare segment

 dominated the market in 2023 with the largest revenue share of 45.66% and is expected to

 grow the fastest from 2024 to 2030 (Grandview Research, 2024). The market is serviced by

 organized care facilities and home-based businesses, both commercial and non-profit

 opera ons.

 The U.S. early childhood education market was estimated at $7.4 billion in 2022 and is

 expected to grow from $9.2 billion in 2023 to $14.5 billion by 2032 (Market Research Future,

 2024  ). The market growth rate is expected to be around 12.2% during the MRF’s forecast

 period (2024 - 2032). A significant amount of growth is a reputable to increased government

 funding. The federal government’s investment in early childhood programs has increased 62

 percent since 2008 (Bipartisan Policy Center, 2019  ).  Early childhood learning services are

 provided by a variety of organizations, including the federal government’s Head Start

 program, local community organizations, and private providers.

 Maternal and infant health care is a $160 billion market, but U.S. parents are more likely to

 encounter gaps in those services than parents who live in other high-income nations, the

 study found (  CNN Business, 2022  ). Failures in care  coordination account for $27.2 billion to

 $78.2 billion in unnecessary medical fees and waste per year (American Medical

 Association, 2019).

Beyond basic medical services, access to available comprehensive prenatal, maternal, pediatric and parental health and wellness programs is extremely fragmented. Early childhood services that incorporate comprehensive family health measures are rare. Modern Collective Care’s business model fits squarely in a prominent gap in the market, responds to recognized weaknesses in family health outcomes and supplies an immersive early childhood learning approach that is gaining prominence.

  1. Description of two or more proposed solutions

The solution is found within evaluating our problems which are attributed to the silos of institutionalized care, it has not worked and will not work as is. Creating systems and hubs built with community and educators with a deep understanding of development as well as mental health support is imperative to creating health in society.  I know I went way over on word count yet feel these are ALL important to advocate for as each interweaves with another. 

 

Beginning at the family planning stage, programming and community of care provides parents and children with comprehensive services to reconnect all the critical facets of child and parental health. Services offerings will cover collective family health and educational needs extending from birth to third-grade, including: Planning, Baby, Mind, Body, Family, and Learning.

  1. List of organizations and key individuals in support of these solutions

Postpartum Support International, Brandi Moore M.Ed, School Counselor, Kent Prairie Elementary, Amber Englund LMHC, Debbie Licker LMHC, Donald Summers, Aaron Everett, Kate Reddy

 

  1. Likely outcomes if the proposed solutions are or are not implemented

We will reverse the trends in rate of infant, maternal and familial perinatal health problems, and childhood developmental deficiencies by: 1. Offering a community-based, integrative system of proven interventions for whole-family child and parent health; 2. Using a full-service model that resolves the care gaps in the current system; 3. Complemented by one-on-one immersive early childhood education and educational/spiritual retreats; 4. Where community- and philanthropic-investors drive revenue for broader community participation

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