Funded Projects

Refugee Maternal and Infant Health Program

Project Year

2026

City & State

New Haven, Connecticut

Program Name

Resident

Topic

Immigrant/Migrant/Refugee/Undocumented Health

Program Description

The Problem: Newly arrived refugee mothers and infants in New Haven face unique barriers navigating the U.S. healthcare system, including linguistic and cultural differences in postpartum care, limited maternal support networks, and difficulty accessing preventative services.[1,2] Although the Yale Pediatric Refugee Clinic served more than 190 patients last year, standard clinical visits rarely provide sufficient time or continuity to address complex perinatal needs. These gaps disproportionately impact health outcomes among refugee infants and their caregivers, who face additional risks during the perinatal period related to social isolation and limited exposure to health education in their primary language.[3]  

Primary Setting: The Refugee Maternal and Infant Health Program (R-MIHP) will be based in New Haven, Connecticut, where approximately 2,500 refugees have resettled since 2015, many of whom speak Dari as their primary language.[4]   Project Goal: R-MIHP aims to develop and implement a culturally tailored, community-based, 5-session maternal-infant health education program for refugee families in New Haven in partnership with Elena’s Light, a local nonprofit supporting refugee women and children through education and health literacy. Existing collaborations include through the Yale Pediatric Refugee clinic and Y-HEALAR (Yale Health Education and Literacy for Asylees and Refugees), a trainee-led academic-community partnership that has offered approximately 70 classes to over 400 refugee participants since 2016.[5,6] Although there is infrastructure to support up to three monthly general health literacy classes, they do not currently offer a dedicated Dari-language curriculum tailored to the needs of new and expecting mothers.  

Proposed Intervention: Participants will receive kits with infant care and breastfeeding supplies. Families will participate in five 1.5 hour long interactive sessions with live Dari interpretation covering newborn care and safety, breastfeeding, postpartum mental health, family planning, and care navigation education. The first and last sessions will be held at the Yale Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning, selected for its accessibility from downtown where many refugee families reside. These in-person sessions will build trust and community, with refreshments and on-site childcare to reduce participation barriers. The remaining sessions will be conducted virtually to accommodate caregivers' schedules and create a private setting to discuss sensitive topics including mental health and contraception. Sessions will be held in the afternoons when participants have reduced caregiver responsibilities of school-aged children. They will be co-facilitated by pediatric residents with faculty oversight, and certified community health worker, former midwife and former refugee, Madina Sapand.  

Number of Children Affected: R-MIHP will directly serve 8-10 refugee infants under six months of age and 16-20 caregivers. Indirect benefits are expected to reach up to 40-50 additional refugee children and 80-100 refugee caregivers through family and community networks. To amplify impact, we will offer virtual participation for an additional 10-15 families, and record sessions for ongoing access through the Elena’s Light website.  

Anticipated Outcomes: Anticipated outcomes include increased caregiver knowledge of infant safety and feeding; improved confidence navigating healthcare systems; completion of postpartum depression screenings; strengthened trust between refugee families and healthcare providers; and development of a supportive peer network that promotes long-term health equity.

Project Goal

The Refugee Maternal and Infant Health Program seeks to improve maternal and infant health outcomes among refugee families in New Haven by providing culturally and linguistically tailored perinatal education, breastfeeding and mental health support, essential newborn supplies, and healthcare navigation through trusted community-based partnerships.

Project Objective 1

By month 9, provide at least 5 educational sessions to a minimum of 10-12 refugee caregivers and distribute Baby Essentials Kits to each caregiver.

Project Objective 2

By program completion, conduct postpartum mental health screenings for at least 75% of participating mothers and refer 100% of those with positive screens to appropriate services.

Project Objective 3

By the end of the project year, increase caregiver confidence in breastfeeding, safe sleep, newborn care, health system navigation.

AAP District

District I

Institutional Name

Yale New Haven Hospital

Contact 1

Beselot Birhanu, MD

Contact 2

Gabrielle Hernaiz-DeJesus, MD