EveryWomanCalifornia A Mixed-Use Website to Promote Preconception Health

1. EveryWomanCaliforniaA Mixed-Use Website to Promote Preconception Health 3RD National Summit on Preconception Health and Health Care Improving Preconception Health in a New Era of Health Care June 12-14, 2011 Tampa/St. Petersburg, FL Christina (Kiko) Malin, MPH, MSW Alameda County Public Health Department in California Flojaune Griffin, PhD, MPH Connie Mitchell, MD, MPH Sangi Rajbhandari, MPH Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health Division California Department of Public Health

2. Acknowledgements The California Department of Public Health, Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health Division, for their financial support via Title V funds; The March of Dimes, California Chapter, for providing staffing and meeting support; The many other organizations who participate in the Preconception Health Council of California, providing leadership in the promotion of preconception health in California

3. Purpose: Forum for statewide planning and decision-making on issues and programs related to preconception health and health care. History: Momentum for PCH promotion in CA began with Every Woman Every Time Initiative PHCC established after the release of CDC’s Select Panel Recommendations on Preconception Care (MMWR April 21, 2006) Organized by State MCAH and the March of Dimes California Chapter Quarterly meetings since May 2006 and issue-specific work groups Funded through Title V funds Public Health Workgroup Purpose: clarify the role of MCAH programs in preconception health promotion; develop curricula and messaging to support and expand these efforts. Provided input on design and content for EveryWomanCalifornia website Preconception Health Council of California (PHCC)

4. Mixed-use website Clearinghouse of information for health professionals and the public Central location for health professionals to share resources and expertise Official website of the Preconception Health Council of California (PHCC) Represents a re-envisioning of the Every Woman, Every Time Initiative What is EveryWomanCalifornia?

5. Development of EveryWomanCalifornia • Title V provided funds for State Preconception Health Coordinator and web designer • The PHCC’s public health workgroup strategized on design and key themes: • Healthy Body • Healthy Mind • Healthy Environment • Reproductive Life Planning • Information for Men • Developed web pages and low literacy printable fact sheets on key preconception health topics such as folic acid, smoking, healthy relationships, and financial stability • EVERY DAY mnemonic with tips • The website went live in May 2009

6. EVERY DAY Mnemonic Exercise—at least 30 minutes daily Vitamin—400 micrograms of folic acid daily Educate yourself about medicines and toxins that can cause birth defects Reproductive life planning—think about whether or when/how you want to have children Yearly doctor visits to discuss physical and mental wellness Diet—vegetables, fruits, lean proteins and while grains daily Avoid tobacco, drugs and risky drinking Your partners, friends and family should be sources of support

8. How is EveryWomanCalifornia Being Used in California? For Consumers: • Comprehensive range of preconception health information, tools and resources in one place • Easy-to-read handouts on 20 preconception health topics, for providers to print out; now available in Spanish • Linkages to external resources such as the CA Smoker’s Helpline and websites that target priority populations • At least 100 other websites have linked to EveryWomanCalifornia to provide direct access • Promoted via word-of-mouth and collateral materials

10. How is EveryWomanCalifornia Being Used in California? For Professionals: • Access to a clearinghouse of preconception health resources • Educational materials, organized by topic • Journal abstracts • Issue briefs and more If registered … • Information sharing opportunities (can upload resources) • Can participate in “town hall” style discussion forums to collaborate with partners • Can create events or partner profiles, visible on the site To date, over 100 professionals have registered for information-sharing

12. Website Activity* • 804 visitors (578 unique) • 3,564 page views • Average of 3 minutes, 47 seconds per visit • How the website is found: 25% direct traffic 23% referring sites 52% search engines • Top fact sheets downloaded: • Acidofólico (Spanish) • Reproductive Life Plan • Folic Acid • La planeación de la familia (Spanish) • Healthy Community Since its launch, the website has been visited from at least 87 countries and all 50 states * May 1-31 unless otherwise noted, approximate

13. Conclusions • EveryWomanCalifornia is a multi-use website that can be adapted to meet the needs of the public and diverse populations in California • It is a useful tool for health professionals to collaborate on preconception health topics • Similar websites can be implemented in other states • Further directions include: field-testing webpages, simplifying user interface, making the site more interactive , translations to other languages, and improved promotion to professionals and the public

14. Additional Questions? Christina (Kiko) Malin, MPH, MSW, Director Maternal, Paternal, Child and Adolescent Health Alameda County Public Health Department in California Preconception Health Council of California E-mail: christina.malin@acgov.org Flojaune Griffin, PhD, MPH, Preconception Health Coordinator California Department of Public Health Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health Division Preconception Health Council of California Email: Flojaune.Griffin@cdph.ca.gov OR Preconception Health Council of California capreconception@marchofdimes.com Every Woman California Website info@everywomancalifornia.org