🏛 Advancing Maternal Bereavement Standards in Tennessee
Invisible Footprints, Inc. works at the intersection of policy, healthcare systems, and community advocacy to establish standardized, trauma-informed bereavement care
Need for Standardized Bereavement Care in Tennessee
Across Tennessee, hundreds of families experience stillbirth and infant loss each year. Yet bereavement care practices vary widely between hospitals and healthcare systems.
Many families report inconsistent communication, limited discharge planning, and lack of structured follow-up support after loss. In the absence of standardized protocols, the quality of care often depends on individual providers rather than established institutional guidelines.
This inconsistency creates avoidable trauma and leaves families navigating grief without coordinated support.
Standardized maternal bereavement practices across Tennessee is essential to ensuring that every family receives compassionate, trauma -informed care-regardless of where they deliver.
Legislative Engagement & Systems Advocacy
Invisible Footprints, Inc actively engaged with state legislators, public health leaders, and maternal health stakeholders to advance standardized bereavement care policies across Tennessee.
Through testimony, coalition partnerships, and policy collaboration, we work to ensure that families experiencing stillbirth and infant loss receive compassionate, trauma-informed care regardless of where they deliver.
 Testifying before the TN Senate Health & Welfare Committee |
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 Chairman Rusty Crowe, TN Senate Health & Welfare Committee |
 From left to right: Senator London Lamar, Senator Jeff Yarbro, Senator Shane Reeves, Jaclyn Townsend(Founder & CEO, Invisible Footprints, Inc.), Senator Becky Duncan Massey, and 2nd Vice-Chair Bobby Harshbarger following a legislative meeting regarding maternal bereavement policy in Tennessee |
⚖Legislative Action: SB 1565
Establishing Stillbirth Support Through Title V Funding in Tennessee.
What SB 1565 Does SB 1565 authorizes the Tennessee Department of Health to utilize available federal Title V Maternal and Child Health Block Grant funds to establish a stillbirth support program.
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Offsets burial and disposition costs
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Establishes structured stillbirth assistance through Title V funding
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Supports educational scholarships for bereaved mothers
