Featured photo: Leʻa Minton provides at-home services to an expectant mother (photo taken pre-COVID). MI-Home photo.
September 8, 2020 — University Health Partners of Hawaii (UHP) Women Health Specialists was awarded a $100,000 grant to support prenatal and postnatal care from the Omidyar ‘Ohana Fund, a donor advised fund at the Hawai‘i Community Foundation (HCF). This grant will specifically provide support for UHP’s Midwifery Integration Home Visitation program (MI-Home), which offers women’s health services to patients from all walks of life.
The MI-Home Program has been in operation since July 2019 under funding from AlohaCare Waiwai Ola grant, which is slated to end in September 2020. However, the Omidyar ‘Ohana Fund will extend the duration of MI-Home to May 2021.
Dr. Men-Jean Lee, Maternal-Fetal Division Chief at the John A. Burns School of Medicine, works closely with UHP’s certified midwife Leʻa Minton to bring comprehensive benefits to mothers in Hawaii.
“By elevating the health of Hawaii’s families, we elevate the overall health of our communities,” said Dr. Lee.
MI-Home is a gateway for mothers who may have social or financial barriers to receive the care they need. The program offers transportation to doctor visits, covers prescribed medicine for those uninsured and underinsured, and supplies family planning, well-woman visits, prenatal and postpartum care for its patients.
To adapt with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, MI-Home began to provide telemedicine consults and mobile electronic fetal monitoring to patients to enforce social distancing guidelines and safety measures for its patients.
Enrollment to the program is not an automatic transfer of care to UHP. If patients already have a primary care or OB/GYN provider, MI-Home can send records to the patients’ PCP. Referrals to the program can be made, whether through self-referral or through providers or third party individuals who know those that would benefit from MI-Home services.
To schedule an appointment or to find out more information, individuals, providers, insurance companies and community partners can contact (808) 476-0690 or head to the UHP website at uhphawaii.org. In most cases, appointments can be scheduled immediately.
About the JABSOM Department of OB/GYN and Women’s Health
Physicians with the OB/GYN Department of the UH John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) provide coverage for multiple hospitals in Hawai‘i including Kapiʻolani Medical Center for Women and Children, Pali Momi Medical Center, Wilcox Medical Center, The Queen’s Medical Center, and Hilo Medical Center.
JABSOM OB/GYN physicians provide care to women facing health problems though their life span, including complications and high-risk pregnancies. This dedicated group also provides essential services to many under-insured patients in Hawaii.
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In addition to directly serving Hawaii’s families, the JABSOM Department of Obstetrics-Gynecology and Women’s Health creates its clinical learning environment for medical students, residents and fellows through its association with University Health Partners of Hawaiʻi (UHP), giving all learners the robust real-world experience they need. The department has 40 physicians, including four who are part-time and three professors emeritus. Another 107 OB-GYN physicians in Hawaii are volunteer faculty. Specialty training is offered in Obstetrics and Gynecology, Family Planning and Maternal-Fetal Medicine.
