Project Self-Sufficiency awarded March of Dimes grant

NEWTON — Project Self-Sufficiency has received a grant from the New Jersey Chapter of the March of Dimes to implement the Baby Basics Initiative program, a targeted effort to reduce the rate of premature births and smoking during pregnancy by women in the Sussex County area. The grant is the first of its kind in recent history to be awarded in Sussex County, according to Laurie Navin, the director of program services for the March of Dimes, adding “Project Self-Sufficiency was chosen in part because of its strong reputation for providing assistance to young mothers, and because the agency serves a more rural population than agencies in other parts of the state.” Founded in 1938, the March of Dimes is a national voluntary health agency which funds programs of research, community services, education, and advocacy to save babies. In 2003, the agency also launched a campaign to address the increasing rate of premature births. The curriculum for the project is the Baby Basics Prenatal Health Literacy Program, a nationally recognized prenatal care and health literacy curriculum created by the What to Expect Foundation, which was conceived in response to a need for pre-natal advice targeted to a low-income audience with limited literacy skills. Project Self-Sufficiency will collaborate with the prenatal clinic at Newton Memorial Hospital, as well as a pre-natal clinic in Warren County, to implement the Baby Basics Health Literacy program. Participants in the program will learn about proper nutrition during pregnancy, receive tips for following a healthy lifestyle, and even learn techniques for reducing stress. Support groups will be available to participants, and access to Project Self-Sufficiency’s range of services will also be provided. Project Self-Sufficiency will provide an array of services for smoking cessation based on similar successful efforts around the state. Face-to-face and phone counseling, group cessation programs, and educational efforts about smoking during pregnancy and second hand smoke will be provided. Additionally, participants will be matched with another pregnant woman who is trying to quit smoking to provide peer support. Counselors will customize support for participants to help them to overcome their personal barriers to stopping smoking. Support and technical assistance will be provided by the What to Expect Foundation. For information, call 973-940-3500.