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About Us

The Obstetrics Initiative (OBI) is a statewide Collaborative Quality Initiative transforming the experience and outcomes of childbirth care. With multidisciplinary teams at over 70 hospitals, we are changing the culture of healthcare, advancing equity, and improving outcomes for all after childbirth in Michigan.

OBI Coordinating Center Spring 2023 Semiannual Meeting

Our Purpose

Inspiring high-quality perinatal care to improve the lives of current and future generations

Our Vision

Better births for everyone

Positionality Statement

OBI recognizes how social, political, and economic injustices – including obstetric racism and discrimination – adversely affect people before, during, and after childbirth. To address these injustices, OBI is committed to fostering psychological safety and equitable, respectful care during labor and birth.

Our Approach

We collect clinically-credible data, compare performance among peers, and share best practices. We accelerate the success of multidisciplinary teams improving the quality and value of childbirth care. We conduct improvement activities that are based on evidence and generate evidence to advance the science of clinical practice change.

In these ways, we are building a transformational quality improvement movement that achieves more efficient resource utilization, improves the culture of care in our hospitals, and enhances the experience, safety, and equity of childbirth care in Michigan.

Although sponsored by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, OBI’s clinical registry and quality initiatives include all individuals experiencing childbirth, regardless of their insurance status or type.