Antigua & Barbuda’s leading public healthcare facility, the Sir Lester Bird Medical Centre (SLBMC), has formally introduced Project Bloom, an ambitious public education and community outreach campaign designed to shift maternal health outcomes across the twin-island nation. The initiative targets a growing public health challenge: a persistently high rate of pregnant women who delay routine prenatal care until late in their pregnancy, or forego professional care entirely until they enter labor.
Project Bloom was developed to counter this trend through accessible, stigma-free messaging and actionable guidance that empowers expectant mothers to prioritize care from the earliest stages of pregnancy. At its core, the campaign centers on three straightforward, life-affirming principles: begin prenatal monitoring as soon as possible, leverage local community clinics and primary care providers for routine check-ups, and transition to hospital-based care for high-risk pregnancies and labor. A key, inclusive pillar of the campaign stresses that it is never too late to seek care, working to dismantle the shame that often keeps women from seeking support at any point during their pregnancy.
Dr. Raymond Mansoor, Chair of Obstetrics and Gynecology at SLBMC, emphasized the transformative impact of early intervention in maternal health. “Early prenatal care is one of the most powerful protective tools we have to safeguard the well-being of both parent and child,” Mansoor explained. “We regularly treat patients who come to us late with preventable, manageable conditions such as gestational hypertension and syphilis—complications that can be mitigated or avoided entirely if caught early. Through Project Bloom, our goal is to help every expectant mother understand that early care lets us act early, laying the groundwork for safer pregnancies and healthier long-term outcomes.”
Beyond clinical guidance, the campaign recognizes that access to consistent care depends on more than just service availability. Many pregnant women face unaddressed social, emotional and financial barriers that prevent them from seeking care early, and Project Bloom was designed to meet those needs with holistic, patient-centered support.
Ann-Marie Browne-Isaac, SLBMC’s Departmental Nurse Manager for Maternity and the facility’s antenatal outpatient clinic, highlighted the on-the-ground difference early care makes for local families. “We see every single day how early intervention changes outcomes for mothers and babies,” Browne-Isaac said. “Our message is clear: start care early with your local community clinic or primary care provider. Most families come to this journey excited and hopeful, and our job is to help keep that positive experience going. Early care lets us monitor for risks, address concerns quickly, and support safer pregnancies, smoother deliveries, and the best possible outcomes for every family.”
Chanier Moore, a social worker on SLBMC’s maternal health team, added that the campaign aims to wrap around women facing non-medical barriers to care. “A lot of the time, the hurdles aren’t clinical—they’re emotional stress, financial strain, or just not knowing how to navigate the healthcare system to get the care you need,” Moore noted. “We want every pregnant woman to know they don’t have to go through this alone. There is tailored support available, and even that first small step to reach out can make a world of difference for you and your baby.”
By merging evidence-based health education, targeted community outreach, and compassionate, patient-first messaging, Project Bloom seeks to drive meaningful increases in early prenatal care engagement, reduce preventable maternal and infant complications, and ensure that more families across Antigua & Barbuda get the life-saving care they need when it matters most.
SLBMC is urging all expectant mothers and their support systems to reach out to local community clinics or their regular healthcare provider to begin prenatal care as early as possible. For additional information about Project Bloom, available antenatal services, or upcoming maternal health education classes, interested parties can contact the SLBMC Outpatient Clinic at 484-2727.