Ouma Health and Valley Healthcare Restore Local Maternity Care Through Innovative Telemidwifery and TeleMFM Partnership

Ouma Health, the nation's only dedicated total maternity telehealth platform founded and led by Maternal-Fetal Medicine (MFM) specialists, today announced a groundbreaking partnership with Valley Healthcare to preserve and restore maternity services in the Columbus region. This partnership addresses a critical need in an area at risk of becoming a maternity desert after the loss of its last local maternity provider.

Like many community clinics across the country, Valley Healthcare faced the real possibility of discontinuing maternity services altogether. Rather than allowing expectant families to lose access to local prenatal and postpartum care, Valley Health partnered with Ouma Health to launch a comprehensive telemidwifery program, seamlessly supported by tele–Maternal-Fetal Medicine (teleMFM) for higher-risk pregnancies.

A New Model for Continuity of Maternity Care

Through this partnership, Ouma and Valley Healthcare have implemented an innovative hybrid care model that combines virtual clinical expertise with hands-on local support. Valley Healthcare's on-site clinical staff serve as the "eyes, ears, and hands" of care delivery, while Ouma's certified nurse midwives and MFM specialists provide real-time virtual oversight, care planning, and medical decision-making.

This collaborative approach allows patients to receive high-quality maternity care close to home, without the need to travel or transfer care prematurely.

Key components of the program include:

• Telemidwifery-Led Prenatal and Postpartum Care: Ouma midwives provide routine prenatal visits, education, and postpartum follow-up through secure telehealth visits.
• Integrated TeleMFM Support: High-risk conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, and fetal growth concerns are managed collaboratively with Ouma's MFM specialists.
• Seamless Transitions of Care: Ouma manages patients through the end of the third trimester, conducts a structured "warm handoff" to delivering providers, and resumes care postpartum ensuring continuity across the entire pregnancy journey.
• Improved Access and Equity: The program preserves local access to maternity services for under served families who might otherwise not be able to get care.

Addressing the Maternity Desert Crisis, One Community at a Time

"Across the U.S., maternity units are closing not because communities don't need them, but because staffing them has become unsustainable," said Sina Haeri, MD, MHSA, CEO of Ouma Health. "This partnership with Valley Health demonstrates that maternity services don't have to disappear. By expanding telehealth beyond consultative MFM into full telemidwifery, we can stabilize care, support local teams, and keep maternity services alive in communities that desperately need them."

"This program allows us to continue serving pregnant patients in our community," said Dr. Asante Hilts, DrPH MPH, CEO of Valley Healthcare. "By partnering with Ouma, we've created a sustainable solution that supports our staff, maintains local access to care, and ensures our patients are never left without guidance during pregnancy and after delivery."

A Scalable Blueprint for the Future of Maternity Care

The Ouma Health & Valley Healthcare partnership represents a replicable model for communities nationwide facing similar workforce shortages. By combining local clinical teams with virtual midwifery and subspecialty expertise, health systems can preserve maternity services, improve outcomes, and combat the growing maternity desert crisis, without sacrificing quality or safety.