The Better Health Foundation (BHF) has awarded a new $350,000 grant to Community Health Care (CHC), a regional nonprofit health center, to improve prenatal care.
CHC is the single largest recipient of BHF grants to date, with three totaling $750,000. Total granting since the foundation launched in 2023 now exceeds $5.3 million.
Many women fall far short of the recommended number (13) of prenatal visits, during pregnancy, to help ensure a healthy delivery, foundation board president Dr. Bill Langley said in a press conference Monday morning at CHC’s facility on Rock Island’s 11th Street.
“At each of those visits, there’s a schedule of tests and procedures that the nurse midwife or obstetrician will do, to look for complications of pregnancy,” he said. “All with the goal of maintaining a perfect inter-uterine environment for that child, so the child hits the ground running – so to speak – intellectually and physically, and has a very good shot of having a healthy brain as he or she goes to school.”
The foundation wanted to better address maternal and child health, and did a lot of research on the issue. CHC does its own data analysis, dovetailing with what BHF does.
Last spring, the BHF Board invited qualified nonprofit organizations to apply for the inaugural Solutions at Scale grant and to partner with the foundation to achieve these maternal and child health goals:
- Improve pregnant women’s adherence to the recommended schedule of prenatal care
- Mitigate the effects of racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic disparities in pregnancy
- Reduce adverse birth outcomes, such as preterm birth and low birth weight
“We know from our research that birth outcomes improve when women receive regular prenatal checkups beginning in their first trimester and continuing throughout their pregnancy. With early, consistent care problems can be prevented and prompt treatment provided,” said Dr. Langley, a retired family physician. “Unfortunately, the percentage of women delaying prenatal care is rising.”
According to the CDC, the percentage of mothers receiving prenatal care in the first trimester of pregnancy declined 1% from 2022 to 2023, while the percentage of mothers with no prenatal care increased 5%.
CHC (which offers medical, dental and behavioral health care services) will use its Solutions at Scale grant funding in Clinton, Scott and Rock Island counties to expand prenatal care access for expectant mothers, ensure healthier pregnancies for program participants, and improve birth outcomes.
“When we began awarding grants in 2023, it was our goal to distribute up to $4 million in our first two years of operation. To exceed that goal by $1 million speaks both to the needs being identified and addressed every day by our grantee partners, and to the commitment of the Better Health Foundation Board of Directors to make health and wellness available to all in our community,” said BHF CEO Melinda “Missy” Gowey.
“We surpassed our initial grantmaking goal by distributing more than $5.3 million since launching the foundation in 2023,” Langley said. “I credit BHF board members for reviewing proposals and for establishing and deepening relationships with area nonprofit organizations. I am excited to see what the future holds for the foundation and the impact we can have on our region’s health in concert with our grantee partners.”
Better Health Foundation established the Solutions at Scale grant, offered every other year beginning in 2025, to allow nonprofits to replicate and scale successful programs and innovations and to achieve greater impact across the region.
“Funding is only half the equation. We’re excited about the relationships we continue to establish and grow with our grant recipients,” Rob Woodall, incoming foundation board president, said Monday morning.
“This is a big day for us,” said Tom Bowman, CEO of CHC, noting they serve roughly 50,000 people in the region, and 90 percent of those fall below 200% of the poverty level.
About 10 years ago, Edgerton Women’s Health was the largest provider of women’s health services to low-income populations, and they since closed.
“We had the opportunity to partner with MercyOne Genesis, Genesis Health System prior to that, and take on OB-GYN into what we do,” Bowman said. “We’ve been able to drastically expand the amount of access for women in this community.”
“There really was nobody else in this community focused on serving low-income women and making sure they had appropriate access to prenatal and post-discharge services,” he noted. “That partnership set us on a pace.”
Serving more immigrants and refugees
In 2019, CHC saw a greater need for services to local immigrants and refugees, especially at the Rock Island location.
“We wanted to be that recognized leader in making sure not just low-income women, but folks that come to this community unable to navigate the health care system, have a trusted partner that can put them in touch with the right services,” Bowman said.
The BHF investment in CHC “has been phenomenal” the past two years, he said.
“This grant, and our work here is not possible without partnerships,” Bowman said, crediting AKWAABA QC (which works with immigrants and refugees), Iowa Black Doula Collective (offering support for expectant mothers), and Augustana College, which will collect and analyze data, to demonstrate return on this investment.
“CHC’s part in this grant is really going to be focused on the actual provision of care,” he said of nurse-midwives and obstetricians. “What we see in our patient population today is, too many people go without care early on in their pregnancy – whether it’s because they don’t know where to go; they don’t have the dollars to make it feasible.
“That’s what we’re trying to do, is take those barriers out, so nobody has any reason not to seek treatment early in their pregnancy,” Bowman said. Getting the care early improves outcomes for mother and child, he noted.
By bringing in other partners to support low-income women, improves their chances to get the necessary early care.
“Akwaaba” means “welcome” for immigrants and refugees, and there are 28 languages spoken among this community in the QC, said group president Nana Ouro-Agoro.
“Our goal is to reach out to our immigrant community, because of the language barrier and ask them to really access the health care they need, especially when they are pregnant, so we can have better outcomes,” she said Monday.
Kimberly Murphy, Augustana’s director of the Center for Advancement of Community Health and Wellness, will hire students to collect data on the prenatal care program, determine what is working, and present findings to CHC.
Improving staff and education
Tina Plett, CHC director of clinic operations, plans to hire an additional certified nurse-midwife.
They currently see about 70 percent of expectant mothers in their service area for regular prenatal care, and aim to increase that to at least 80 percent. Plett said they will improve education for patients.
Iowa and Illinois have lower rates (than nationally) of pregnant women getting needed prenatal care, Plett said.
“It’s because of the number of OB-GYN docs, nurse-midwives, and also education,” she said. “We have seen an influx of newcomers to the community who don’t have the knowledge and resources to understand how important it is. When you are facing additional challenges outside your health care, it falls lower on the totem pole.”
That connects to the vital importance of educating women on starting prenatal care, Plett said. “That can really assist with less complications.”
Potential of low birth weight is a major concern, if women and their unborn baby aren’t getting proper nutrition, which can lead to more complications in growth and development, she said.
The new grant will allow CHC and its partners to put more resources toward education and provision of care, Plett said.
CHC projects to have about 500 deliveries in the next year, which is 100 more than 2023, mainly in Scott and Rock Island counties, as well as Muscatine and Clinton counties.
Of their population, CHC serves about 9 percent uninsured, and of those insured, many have high “out of pocket” costs, Plett said.
Increasing insurance costs and federal cuts to Medicaid are challenging.
“They still need the care,” she noted. “Those costs come out of the hospital or the health center. We’re still gonna make sure the patient gets the care.”
Other BHF funding has gone to better mental health care for prenatal patients.
“We had two nurse-midwives interested in going back to school, so they completed their psychiatric nurse practitioner program, now duly board-certified,” Plett said, noting BHF provided funding for that training. They have on-site psychiatric nurse practitioners who help with medication and management, for expectant mothers and new mothers.
Another BHF funded program focuses on nutrition for pregnant women.
“Improving maternal health isn’t something any one organization can do alone,” Tom Bowman said. “Through partnerships with local hospitals, doulas, and community organizations, we’re building a network of care that strengthens families and connects moms to the support they need for healthy pregnancies and healthy babies.”
Other area BHF grants
The BHF awarded 2025 Capacity Building and Service Support Grants to the following organizations:
- $20,000 to Autistic & Loved to hire a part-time behavior specialist to lead age-specific social and support groups for autistic children, tweens, teens, and their parents and caregivers. The specialist will expand Summer Enrichment and Social Support Group programs to year-round offerings that improve mental well-being, peer connection, and family resilience.
- $75,000 to Bethany for Children & Families to hire its first major gifts officer with a focus on major donor recruitment and grants management.
- $64,000 to ChildServe Foundation, Inc. to support the development of their new center, ChildServe Davenport, which will provide services for children with special healthcare needs, including an Autism Day program, a comprehensive childcare program for children ages two to five.
- $75,000 to Community Health Care, Inc. to hire a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner to serve their new Muscatine Clinic, home to one of the state’s lowest provider-to-patient ratios. The program will close urgent access gaps for patients navigating poverty, trauma, and language barriers.
- $15,000 to Hawkeye Area Community Action Program to expand the Connections program to screen food-insecure neighbors in Cedar County for mental health concerns and social needs. The project will connect more neighbors to care earlier, reduce stigma, and build stronger, more stable futures.
- $75,000 to the Heart of Hope Ministries to purchase fresh, low-sodium, and low-sugar foods and sustain staff who operate the only evening food pantry in Rock Island’s West End. The groceries replace what chronic disease and poverty steal: energy, dignity, and control. The grant is intended to help neighbors eat better, live stronger, and avoid preventable illness.
- $60,000 to MercyOne Genesis Foundation to continue offering the Family Connects in-home nursing visits to new parents delivering at MercyOne Genesis Silvis. The evidence-based program is critical for ensuring families have the support they need when transitioning home with a new baby.
- $47,000 to Narratives to sustain and expand trauma-informed coaching, peer groups, and mentorship for young adults navigating poverty, lack of insurance, and untreated mental health challenges.
- $18,850 to Pregnancy Resources to help underserved parents gain access to essential resources. The grant will serve the needs of at least 400 pregnant/postpartum women over the next 12 months, secure the distribution of an additional 400 cans of formula and ensure 50 more families receive essential newborn care items.
- $75,000 to Project Now to hire its first dedicated development professional to launch a coordinated, sustainable fundraising program serving Rock Island, Mercer, and Henry counties. The position will allow the organization to diversify its revenue, grow traditional fundraising, and fully leverage federal grants, so at-risk children and families continue receiving life-changing services, from Head Start and housing to senior nutrition and mental health support.
- $10,000 to River Bend Food Bank to support its hunger relief efforts by providing food to a network of area food pantries.
- $75,000 to SAL Community Services to hire a full-time Licensed Clinical Social Worker to provide on-site mental health services at the organization’s four early childhood centers. The therapist will offer trauma-informed care, early intervention, and family engagement to more than 700 children.
- $30,000 to Spring Forward Learning Center to expand Emotional Support services during Summer Programs and provide staff with Training in the areas of Trauma Informed Care, Mental Health Literacy, and Social-Emotional Learning strategies—giving staff actionable tools to manage behavior and strengthen relationships.
- $37,000 to Tapestry Farms to support a full-time position that helps refugee moms and their young children - from Syria, Afghanistan, Democratic Republic of Congo, and other war-torn countries - access the evidence-based Women, Infant, and Children nutrition program.
- $50,000 to The Center for the Peer-to-Peer Support Program that delivers evidence-based, cost-effective support through trained individuals with lived experience. Designed to reduce isolation and promote sustained recovery, the program builds resilience and trust.
- $50,000 to Together Making a Better Community (TMBC) for Healthy Kids Hub, a year-long initiative addressing pediatric health through monthly campaigns at the TMBC walk-in clinic hub. Partnering with schools and community groups, TMBC provides screenings, education, and mental health support where families come together.
- $75,000 to Unity House of Davenport to hire an in-house drug and alcohol counselor to provide individual and group therapy for men in recovery housing. On-site counseling during the high-risk early months of sobriety will reduce relapse, address co-occurring mental health needs, and build essential coping skills.
- $75,000 to Vera French Foundation to fund an Opioid/Substance Use Disorder Case Manager and Drug Court Liaison to help people seeking mental illness care secondary to an Opioid or Substance Use Disorder diagnosis. The program focuses on the whole person and is intended to stop the revolving door of traditional addictions treatment.
- $75,000 to YWCA of the Quad Cities to improve maternal and child health by transforming its Empowerment Centers into community hubs offering free essentials (nutrition, hygiene, childcare items), health education, and peer connections. To better serve women and families in poverty, the YWCA will provide transportation support to increase access and more than double its monthly reach.
Better Health Foundation accepts requests from qualified 501(c)3 organizations in Cedar, Clinton, Louisa, Muscatine and Scott counties in Iowa, and Henry, Mercer, Rock Island and Whiteside counties in Illinois. The next round of BHF grants for Innovation will open in January 2026. Award criteria and instructions on how to apply for a grant can be found at www.thebetterhealthfoundation.org.
To find or refer prenatal services through Community Health Care, Inc.’s Closing Care Gaps for Moms initiative. For more information or to access services at Community Health Care, visit www.chcqca.org
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