PURPOSE:
This presentation shares a midwifery-led innovation from Birth Detroit, a Black-led freestanding birth center in the United States. The purpose is to highlight how community-based, home-centered postpartum care can advance equity, restore trust in healthcare systems, and expand the vision of what midwifery can and should be.

DISCUSSION:
At Birth Detroit, postpartum care is approached as a relationship, not a single appointment. Our model includes home visits at 24–48 hours, 5–7 days, 2 weeks, and 4–6 weeks postpartum, during which midwives provide clinical assessments, breastfeeding support, emotional check-ins, and education for the whole family. This model removes barriers to access, strengthens continuity, and honors the postpartum period as a critical window for healing and connection. Rooted in the values of safety, love, trust, and justice, this approach centers the lived experiences of Black families, who have often been failed by traditional maternal healthcare systems.

EVIDENCE WHERE RELEVANT:
In addition to strong anecdotal feedback, formal patient satisfaction data gathered through DNP projects from the University of Michigan reflect high levels of trust, satisfaction, and engagement with the model. Families consistently report feeling seen, supported, and respected. The model is also informed by ACNM postpartum care guidelines, reproductive justice principles, and research highlighting disparities in postpartum care access and outcomes. Birth Detroit is among the few U.S. birth centers routinely mobilizing midwives for home-based postpartum care.

KEY MESSAGE:
To meet the global call for “One Million More Midwives,” we must also transform how midwifery is practiced. Community-rooted, culturally centered postpartum care is essential to that future. Midwives must be recognized not just as birth attendants, but as leaders in postpartum healing, justice, and innovation. Poster session 2 (Group A)