Our Story
The Buffalo Prenatal-Perinatal Network (BPPN) is dedicated to creating healthier futures for mothers and their babies across Erie County. Established in 1987 as one of New York State’s 16 Comprehensive Networks, BPPN emerged to address critical issues of high infant mortality and low birthweight. Our mission is clear: to improve pregnancy outcomes, enhance maternal and child health care, and ensure families receive the comprehensive support they need.
At BPPN, we focus on breaking down barriers to quality care by improving the accessibility, acceptability, and adequacy of health and human services. We connect families with a full spectrum of preventative and primary health care, social support, and educational resources. Our efforts include identifying gaps in service, launching innovative projects to address these challenges, and fostering collaboration among service providers.
What Makes Our Approach Different:
in addition to community-based support, we offer FREE home-based support for our program families. We particularly concentrate on high-risk neighborhoods in Buffalo, including over 25 zip codes across the East and West sides, South Buffalo, Cheektowaga, and Lackawanna. Our work is centered on supporting African-American and Hispanic women, who face higher rates of low birth weight infants and infant mortality. We achieve this through our three programs. Healthy Families, Community Health Workers, and the Buffalo Fatherhood Initiative help to build self-sufficiency and confidence while decreasing child abuse and neglect as a family grows.
Through targeted initiatives and community-focused strategies, BPPN promotes coordination among community partners and delivers valuable educational resources to both professionals and the public. By addressing the unique needs of our community, we strive to build a healthier, more equitable future for all families in Erie County.
Our organization also nurturing fathers and male caregivers through the Buffalo Fatherhood Initiative. Founded in 2019, the program focuses on the personal growth and development of fathers and male caregivers of all ages. Our team assists in mentoring participants in financial literacy (budgeting and debt management), one-on-one guidance for fathers and learning reliable parenting and coparenting strategies through Nurturing Fathers classes.
During the Nurturing Fathers Class, they work to improve communication skills, non-violent discipline, conflict resolution and building healthy relationships with their children and families. In doing so, the participants are provided with a safe space to talk about what’s going on in their lives and get the support and encouragement they need.