Centering Healthcare Institute

Centering Healthcare Institute (CHI) is a non-profit organization focused on transforming healthcare by replacing traditional individual medical visits with a group care model. The organization was founded in 2001 by Sharon Schindler Rising, a nurse-midwife who pioneered the group care concept in the 1990s. Rising developed the model after observing that group sessions were more efficient and led to better health outcomes and patient experiences, particularly for pregnant people of color.

CHI's primary business is providing the framework, training, and implementation support for healthcare providers to adopt its Centering models. The main programs are CenteringPregnancy®, CenteringParenting®, and CenteringHealthcare®. CenteringPregnancy® brings together 8-12 individuals with similar due dates for a series of 10 extended prenatal visits. These 90-to-120-minute sessions combine individual health assessments (belly checks, weight, blood pressure) with facilitated group discussions and community building. CenteringParenting® continues this model for well-child care through the first two years of a child's life. The business model is based on helping clinical practice sites implement these billable group medical visits, which are reimbursed similarly to individual care.

The organization operates as a national nonprofit, headquartered in Boston, MA, and partners with nearly 600 clinical sites across 46 states, including FQHCs, community health centers, major health systems, and the U.S. military. Its mission is to improve health outcomes, disrupt inequitable systems, and reduce health disparities, with a particular focus on the maternal health crisis affecting Black birthing people and Medicaid recipients. CHI's work is supported by significant philanthropic funding from foundations such as the Bezos Family Foundation, MacKenzie Scott, and Valhalla Charitable Foundation, which has enabled the organization to scale its operations and develop virtual care formats.

Keywords: group prenatal care, group pediatric care, Centering model, maternal health, child health, health equity, patient-centered care, community health, value-based care, prenatal education, parenting support, healthcare transformation, evidence-based care, CenteringPregnancy, CenteringParenting, reducing preterm birth, maternal mortality, health disparities, nonprofit, healthcare implementation