Fellow Amy Crockett, MD, wins $100,000 McNulty Prize for Liberty Fellowship Project improving birth outcomes
October 26, 2016
The Aspen Institute and Trustee Anne Welsh McNulty today announced Dr. Amy Crockett as the recipient of the ninth annual John P. McNulty Prize for her Liberty Fellowship project – expanding CenteringPregnancy™ and institutionalizing it across South Carolina’s healthcare system. Crockett is a Fellow from the Class of 2013 and a Maternal-Fetal Medicine Specialist with Greenville Health System.
The $100,000 prize recognizes leaders who harness the innovation and excellence that characterized their career success to create replicable and sustainable models for addressing seemingly intractable problems around the world. Crockett is being honored for her transformative work to expand a group model of prenatal care that is drastically improving birth outcomes in South Carolina and influencing the way healthcare is delivered across the nation.
“When we think of complications at birth or infant mortality, we often think about developing countries dealing with abject poverty, weak infrastructure, or broken human services,” said former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, a member of the McNulty Prize jury. “Yet, this is occurring right here in the United States. With CenteringPregnancy, South Carolina & Dr. Crockett are pioneering a model of change that has global applications for women and children everywhere.”
Anne Welsh McNulty added, “CenteringPregnancy is a paradigm shift in healthcare delivery – a true innovation that is not only socially positive, but in fact profitable and more affordable for patients, taxpayers and the country.”
As part of the Liberty Fellowship experience, each Fellow identifies and implements an individual project. Fellows are encouraged to take on projects for which they have a passion and sphere of influence, increasing the potential for impact across South Carolina and beyond. With the CenteringPregnancy expansion, Crockett is the first Liberty Fellow to be awarded the McNulty Prize, selected from over 2300 Fellows within the Aspen Global Leadership Network representing 50 countries.
“Liberty Fellowship allowed me to understand the project from an international health, business and financial context. Drawing from the seminar experience and the collaborative partnerships I developed through Liberty Fellowship, I was able to improve health not only for the women in my own waiting room, but for all women in South Carolina,” commented Crockett.
Watch the short documentary on Dr. Crockett and CenteringPregnancy here: http://bit.ly/2dl7WK9
A Value-Based Care Approach
Over 500,000 babies are born preterm every year in the U.S., resulting in lifelong neurosensory and cognitive disabilities; disparities in education, health and employment; and an estimated combined lifetime medical cost of over $26 billion. In South Carolina, preterm birth rates are higher than in Sudan, Iran and Bangladesh, and minority mothers face even worse prospects.
It was in this context that Crockett took on as her Liberty Fellowship project the effort to expand CenteringPregnancy. This group model of prenatal care combines physical assessments and health education for expecting women within a supportive group environment.
Through Crockett’s pioneering research and evaluation, the model has been proven to decrease rates of preterm birth by almost 50 percent, reduce admissions to the neonatal intensive care unit, eliminate racial disparities in preterm births and improve family planning outcomes.
Once she found that it was significantly improving the lives of her own at-risk patients, Crockett sought to increase access to the model for patients across the state. She successfully worked with Medicaid and private insurers like BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina to provide enhanced reimbursement for the coverage. The program has resulted in over $7 million in medical savings, and over 25 states and countries like Mexico are working to adopt the model.
The South Carolina Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), which is charged with administering Medicaid, was a crucial partner in the project. Liberty Fellow and HHS Director Christian Soura commented, “Amy turned a desire to create better health outcomes into something tangible and meaningful, and she successfully formalized and institutionalized everything along the way.”
Crockett will be honored at the annual McNulty Prize reception in New York on November 2.
About Liberty Fellowship
Liberty Fellowship is a statewide initiative that seeks to inspire outstanding leadership in South Carolina, empowering the state’s young leaders to realize their full potential. Fostering a values-based approach, the Fellow program exposes leaders to diverse perspectives, critical thinking, and intellectual and personal development. Established in 2004 and including over 250 Fellows from across South Carolina, the program is a collaboration of co-founders Anna Kate and Hayne Hipp, Wofford College and The Aspen Institute. For more information, visit www.libertyfellowshipsc.org.
About The John P. McNulty Prize
Founded by Anne Welsh McNulty, the John P. McNulty Prize celebrates the boldness and impact of individuals using their exceptional leadership abilities, entrepreneurial spirit, and private sector talents to address the world’s toughest challenges. A distinguished international jury, including Secretary Madeleine Albright, Ugandan statesman Olara Otunnu, and international development expert Brizio Biondi-Morra, selected the 2016 winner. Previous juries have included Mary Robinson, Bill Gates, Sr., and Sir Richard Branson. To learn more about the McNulty Prize, visit www.mcnultyprize.org.
