Medical-Legal Partnerships Can Address Unmet Legal Needs Contributing to Poor Maternal and Infant Health Outcomes

Medical-legal partnerships (MLPs) can help address unmet legal needs contributing to poor maternal and infant health outcomes, according to a study published in Obstetrics & Gynecology.

“Establishing Perinatal LAW transformed the ability to provide better care for patients at highest risk due to [social determinants of healthcare] SDOH,” wrote Loral Patchen, PhD, CNM, MedStar Health Research Institute, the Georgetown University Health Justice Alliance Perinatal Legal Assistance & Wellbeing Program, and the Georgetown University Health Justice Alliance, Georgetown Law Center in Washington, DC.

MLPs are a part of a national movement that aims to promote health and well-being for communities that have been marginalized and discriminated against. These partnerships can also be a powerful tool in the fight against racism in health care. Although there is evidence of a few MLPs that focus on the perinatal period, there is growing interest in using them to improve maternal health.

The Perinatal LAW Project (Perinatal Legal Assistance and Wellbeing) is part of the Health Justice Alliance and is dedicated to expectant, birthing, and postpartum patients who receive care from Women’s and Infants’ Services at MedStar Washington Hospital Center. Since March 2021, the Perinatal LAW Project has served more than 164 patients/clients and helped them recover over $200,000 through income support, paid leave, back wages, health insurance coverage, debt relief, rent abatements, and security deposit refunds.

A successful implementation of a similar program requires several key insights. These include building an appropriate legal team and referral processes, investing in training and capacity building for the health care team to enable them to utilize and extend the legal team's expertise, and monitoring a patient's legal needs throughout their perinatal journey.

“Expanding access to justice for civil legal needs through mechanisms such as medical–legal partnerships is a critical part of the response we need to support our mothers and to ensure that they and their families enjoy good health and well-being,” wrote the study authors.

Reference

Patchen L, Richardson R, McCullers A, Girard V. Integrating Lawyers Into Perinatal Care Teams to Address Unmet, Health-Harming Legal Needs. Obstet Gynecol. 2023;10.1097/AOG.0000000000005417. doi:10.1097/AOG.0000000000005417