One of the goals of each Black Infant Health Practice Initiative site is to sustain community efforts to significantly reduce Black Infant Mortality. The BIHPI process will be sustained in Hillsborough County through the utilization of a Community Action Team (CAT) consisting of three committees: Community Board, Outreach and Messaging and Speakers Bureau.

The CAT will continue as a subcommittee of Healthy Start Coalition of Hillsborough County Plan and Development Committee and REACHUP, Inc THRED (Taskforce to Heal Racial & Ethnic Disparities) and will become a standing agenda item at PDC meetings. The work of CAT will be reported back to the Coalition Board of Directors, PDC, FIMR and Central Hillsborough Healthy Start project, a program of REACHUP, Inc.

The work plan developed through BIHPI will become part of the REACHUP Local Health System Action Plan and the Coalition’s 2005-2010 Service Delivery Plan. This will allow for strategies developed to become part of discussions of thesystem of care for pregnant women and newborns in Hillsborough County and potential funding through either Healthy Start or other funding mechanisms.