Perinatal Quality Collaboratives (PQCs) exist to turn evidence into action so maternal and infant health care gets safer and more equitable. The National Network of PQCs (NNPQC) and the CDC describe PQCs as state or multi-state networks that rapidly improve care through data-guided implementation. After more than a decade of focus on hospital-based preparedness, there
Step Up Together for PQCs: From Drills to Sustainable System Change
then updated December 3, 2025.
By Emily Bronson
AABC Birth Institute Roundup
then updated November 10, 2025.
By Jennifer Johnson
The American Association of Birth Centers (AABC) has stood by their mission to promote and support freestanding birth centers and alongside midwifery units in all communities to achieve a high-value model of evidence-based care that is equitable, safe, and respectful for over 40 years. I have been fortunate in my career to have worked in
Transforming Maternal Health with Step Up Together
then updated October 27, 2025.
By Emily Bronson
Have you heard of the new CMS model designed to improve maternal health care? As of January 2025, 14 states and D.C. are participating in the Transforming Maternal Health (TMaH) Model. TMaH is a 10-year care delivery and payment model that funds state Medicaid programs to focus on three pillars: 1) Access, Infrastructure & workforce
What It Really Means to Join a Step Up Together Action Collaborative
then updated August 28, 2025.
By Amy Romano, MBA, MSN, CNM, FACNM
If you’re considering joining a Step Up Together Action Collaborative—or encouraging your hospital or community partner to do so—you might be wondering: what does participation actually look like? The short answer: it’s a structured, time-limited commitment with real benefits for your team and your patients. The longer answer is that there’s a rhythm to the
Right-Sizing Your Drill: Finding the Fit for Your Team
then updated August 20, 2025.
By Amy Romano, MBA, MSN, CNM, FACNM
There’s nothing quite like the power of a large, truly interdisciplinary Full Transfer Drill. One Massachusetts participant recently reflected: That drill brought together area home birth midwives, EMS providers, hospital team members from multiple departments, hospital administrators, and Department of Public Health officials—an extraordinary example of what it looks like when a whole system shows
The 3 Delays: Strengthening Your Transfer Process Before It’s Urgent
then updated August 11, 2025.
By Amy Romano, MBA, MSN, CNM, FACNM
When an emergency happens in a community birth setting, every minute counts. In Step Up Together, we use the 3 Delays Framework to help teams identify and address the most common barriers to safe, timely, and respectful transfers from home or birth center to hospital care. The 3 Delays model has been used worldwide to
From Drill to Real-World Change: The Most Common QI Projects Sparked by Full Transfer Drills
then updated September 9, 2025.
By Amy Romano, MBA, MSN, CNM, FACNM
Full Transfer Drills are one of the most powerful tools for strengthening community-to-hospital transfer processes. They don’t just test logistics, they spark lasting quality improvement (QI) projects that make care safer and more seamless. Through the Step Up Together® Action Collaborative, we’ve seen clear patterns in the kinds of QI projects that emerge. These projects often map directly onto the Three Delays framework, a proven lens for understanding barriers to safe and timely care.
Practice Makes Prepared: Choosing Between Partial and Full Transfer Drills—and Why Both Matter
then updated July 23, 2025.
By Amy Romano, MBA, MSN, CNM, FACNM
In community birth settings like birth centers and home birth practices, emergencies are rare—but when they happen, everyone needs to be ready. That’s why interdisciplinary emergency drills are so critical: they help teams practice protocols, build trust across settings, and make life-saving decisions more efficient under pressure. At Step Up Together, we’ve seen firsthand how
Integrating Doulas into Community Birth Transfer Drills
then updated July 7, 2025.
By Emily Bronson
Practicing for community-to-hospital birth transfers for clinical emergencies is crucial for effective preparedness for all professionals involved in the birth process. Though these events are rare, there is a real chance that a birth doula will be present when a birthing person requires a transfer from a home or birth center. As part of the
Step Up Together has been featured on
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