UnityPoint Health – Grinnell Receives Maternal Health Excellence Grant For Another Year

UnityPoint Health - Grinnell Regional Medical Center (GRMC) was awarded the Center of Excellence Grant by the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services for July 2026 – June 2027. The $212,500 grant for 2026 – 2027 is a targeted continuation of the Iowa HHS grant of the same name, with the initial planning period monies presented to UnityPoint Health in December of 2021, and subsequent continuation awarded to UnityPoint Health – Grinnell each year since to establish Iowa’s framework to sustain access to high quality, obstetric (OB) services for rural populations.

GRMC secured an additional $200,000 grant through the Iowa HHS Healthy Hometowns initiative, a part of the federal government’s rural health transformation plan with the goal of building a high-quality, sustainable system of care that improves the health, well-being and quality of life in rural communities. This additional funding will be used in the coming year to meet four objectives:

1. Initiate an obstetric nurse navigator pilot program at GRMC to help guide patients through their entire perinatal journey
2. Establish a community baby shower pilot program to provide essential, free resources, education, health screenings, and support to new and expectant families
3. Obtain and outfit space for an outreach clinic in Newton, Iowa, to provide prenatal and postpartum care in Jasper County
4. Recruit a healthcare provider (obstetrician/gynecologist or family practice with obstetrics) to increase access to maternal health specialty services

“Our dedication to providing quality maternal health care for patients and families in our region is unwavering,” says Laura Juel, RN, MSN, NEA-BC, vice president of nursing and clinical services at GRMC. “We are committed to the growth and outreach of this vital healthcare service, including education and resources, prenatal care, labor and delivery services and postpartum support.”

From July 2025 – June 2026, GRMC focused grant funding on maternal health outreach, postpartum support and connecting new parents with the resources they need, including perinatal mental health services through the UnityPoint Health – Grinnell Behavioral Health Clinic offering with a telehealth provider. A second telehealth provider joined the care team in December 2025, increasing telehealth appointment access to five days a week.

In the fall of 2025, UnityPoint Health – Grinnell Public Health started an initiative called the Village Closet, which supports expectant mothers, caregivers, grandparents and foster parents in need throughout pregnancy and the first year of a child’s life. Available items depend on donations, but are free of charge including car seats, baby clothes, maternity clothes, bottles, diapers, breastfeeding items and more. From September 2025 – June 2026, 27 families were supported through the Village Closet program.

Certified lactation experts continue to support patients through inpatient, public health and clinic care, providing education and one-on-one assistance for a breastfeeding parent, helping them reach their individual breastfeeding goals. Lactation guidance is also offered to postpartum support group attendees.

In this new 2026 – 2027 grant period, UnityPoint Health – Grinnell will continue maternal health and postpartum outreach, Life with Baby postpartum support group and the Village Closet, and still connect patients to education, resources and supports they need, including mental health services.

Additionally, GRMC has completed the first two phases of construction on their OB unit expansion and renovation. This multi-phase construction project began in 2025 and is slated to be completed in 2027, taking a planful approach to ensure that labor and delivery services remain functional for patient care 24/7 to add a fourth labor, delivery, recovery and postpartum (LDRP) room, renovate the existing LDRP rooms at GRMC and create a new entrance to the unit.

To date, a new entrance to the unit has been completed, an additional postpartum/recovery patient room is finished, and the nursery, medication room, and nurses’ station have been renovated and optimized. Phase III of construction will move room-to-room, creating a new LDRP room, and renovating all other OB patient rooms to make them larger and improve care functionality and patient experience.

UnityPoint Health – Grinnell provides high quality, close-to-home maternity care to families in a six-county region where maternal health care and OB delivery can be difficult to access, serving four neighboring counties with no labor and delivery care.

Providers at UnityPoint Health – Grinnell’s Family Practice Clinic and Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinic provide OB outreach at the UnityPoint Health – Marshalltown Multi-Specialty Clinic to bring OB care offerings closer to more parents-to-be. They are accepting new OB patients. Call (641) 236-2905 to schedule an appointment to see an OB provider in Grinnell or Marshalltown.