Why We’re Designing Government to Work Better and Smarter for Families
A four-part U.S. Digital Service blog series detailing how the federal “Birth of a Child and Early Childhood” Life Experience team used human-centered design to improve benefit access, peer support, and maternal mental health services for families with children ages 0–5.
This report-style blog compilation documents the interagency 0–5 Life Experience team’s research and pilot work to modernize how families access federally funded benefits during pregnancy and early childhood.
Drawing on over 120 interviews with families, caregivers, and frontline staff, the series maps common pain points—such as fragmented enrollment processes, administrative burdens, unmet material needs, and challenges maintaining benefits—and introduces pilot solutions including Alumni Peer Navigator (APN) services and peer support models grounded in participatory design. The series also highlights a maternal mental health research sprint that informed the HHS National Strategy to Improve Maternal Mental Health Care, emphasizing trauma-informed screening, equitable service delivery, paid leave policy, and integrated, community-centered care models.
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