Noemi Franco, 2025 MPH Summer Intern
This summer I had the opportunity to work alongside Alameda Health System, the Wallace Center, and the Alameda County Public Health Department to support a program evaluation and needs assessment of the Spanish-Centering program at Highland Hospital. My primary role focused on the qualitative research portion of the study, where I conducted interviews and focus groups with women who had participated in Spanish-Centering, a model of group prenatal care that takes a holistic approach to medical care, education, and community support.
My primary role focused on the qualitative research portion of the evaluation. I helped co-design the interview and focus group guide, then conducted interviews and group sessions with Spanish-speaking mothers who had participated in the program. I also engaged with midwives, facilitators, community members, and public health leaders to understand how the program operates and where improvements could be made. This approach made the evaluation more responsive and community-centered. Using insights from these conversations, I provided recommendations to program managers on how to make Spanish-Centering even more culturally responsive, accessible, and supportive for future participants.
The racial equity component of this project was central. Spanish-Centering uniquely affirms Latinx culture by offering care in Spanish, incorporating cultural traditions into the curriculum, and centering immigrant mothers’ lived experiences. Mothers shared that the program not only reduced isolation but also created a strong sense of belonging in the U.S and as a Latina, I found their stories deeply resonant with my own family’s experiences. The evaluation highlighted how culturally grounded programs like Spanish-Centering can help reduce maternal health disparities, promote trust, and advance racial equity by ensuring families are treated with dignity, respect, and belonging.
This internship was also an invaluable professional development experience. I strengthened my skills in qualitative research design, stakeholder engagement, community-based evaluation, and culturally responsive analysis. Most importantly, I had the opportunity to listen directly to mothers’ stories, which reaffirmed for me the transformative power of centering community voices in health care design. Seeing how mothers described Spanish-Centering as “life-changing,” and how facilitators and midwives felt validated by this feedback, was incredibly rewarding. The experience confirmed my commitment to advancing equity in maternal and child health and showed me how rigorous, community-based research can be a tool for change.