SOUTH BEND, Ind. (WNDU) – The St. Joseph County Department of Health held the first class of its weekly EMBER program for 2026 last week.
EMBER stands for “Empowering Moms and Babies through Education and Resilience” and helps women navigate pregnancy and postpartum health challenges. Over the last year and a half, the program has evolved to cover topics for women at different stages of pregnancy.
Chaquisha Jordan, maternal-infant health coordinator for the St. Joseph County Department of Health, leads the program. Jordan joined the health department as a former labor and delivery nurse to help expectant mothers earlier in their pregnancy.
“I would see a lot of moms that had high-risk deliveries because they had different conditions that weren’t managed. So, they didn’t understand what it meant when they had gestational diabetes, or why they needed to follow certain plans, or they didn’t have the access to get to the pharmacy to get the medications that they were supposed to be on. And there was a lot of little things along the way,” Jordan said.
The program provides weekly classes on pregnancy and postpartum health, with recent emphasis on managing mental health challenges.
“A lot of women feel like you have to do it all. You have to wear all the hats, and you have to juggle everything and just make it all work. And that’s really not feasible long-term. There’s a lot of moms that suffer in silence because they think how they’re feeling is just something that they have to suck up and deal with. And so, we talk a lot about what different perinatal mood anxiety disorders can look like, from anxiety and depression to OCD,” Jordan said.
EMBER classes moved online this year and feature live foreign language translation to increase accessibility for women across the county. Jordan said the program aims to provide community support and facilitate a healthy transition to motherhood.
“Just being a parent is hard enough, and you’re always trying to figure out how to make these different things work. So, we had already made it free, and so now making it to where you can access it from anywhere. We have a community of moms that we’ve built over the past year and a half. And just knowing that this is not something that you have to do alone. And if you want the extra support, all you have to do is click a button, register, and we’ll be connected with you and get you enrolled,” Jordan said.
EMBER classes run from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. every Thursday through April 30. A peer support group follows the class every second and fourth Thursday.
Registration is available online at the St. Joseph County Department of Health’s website.
Copyright 2026 WNDU. All rights reserved.
link
