If you have a heart for providing on-going support, you are among many who are providing clients with more than a single contact followed by perhaps a few sessions of crisis intervention. In order to ensure a healthy pregnancy, a healthy lifestyle and/or healing from an abortion, many centers have developed long term, one-on-one mentoring and support programs.

Every program you provide should lead to the fulfillment of the vision and accomplish the mission you have written for your organization. Before you add to your core programs, make sure that the existing programs and services you offer are doing well, and have a strong foundation.

It’s wise to survey your community to see what programs are already available to clients and develop a detailed community referral manual and system to connect clients to the appropriate local agencies and support groups from emergency housing to child care. If a service is not available in the community, some centers add them, such as host home programs, single moms’ support groups, pre and post-adoption support groups, groups for parents of pregnant teens, even licensed maternity homes and licensed adoption agencies.

Today, long-term care programs affiliated with Heartbeat or within Heartbeat-affiliated centers fall into the following categories.

Licensed maternity homes and residential programs

Maternity homes come in many different models – those serving minors, women, mothers and their babies, those focused primarily or exclusively on the parenting choice of adoption, those serving “hard cases” (e.g. women with drug and alcohol problems). How the home is structured and its specific policies will be determined by the mission and the needs of the particular community.

Licensed adoption agencies

Some adoption agencies are loosely connected to one or more pregnancy centers, perhaps by having some pregnancy center Board Members serving on the adoption agency Board. The close connection leads to a more “seamless” approach to providing adoption services to a client who chooses parents for her child through an adoption plan. Thus, the transfer of the client from one helping organization to another is as seamless as possible. Research shows that this is one of the factors that leads to a greater number of adoptions. More and more pregnancy centers are founding licensed adoption agencies because they cannot find good Christian adoption providers in their communities and because they have a large number of clients who will have great difficulty parenting their child. They need a viable adoption alternative. When centers found their own adoption agencies, they see major increases in the number of clients choosing an adoption plan.

Prenatal care

Some pregnancy centers have added ultrasound (and perhaps STD testing) to their crisis-intervention services; some have expanded medical services to include prenatal care, some for only 3 months, others for the full 9 months but limited to low-risk pregnancies (for insurance purposes).

One-on-one consultation/mentoring

Some use workbooks, like My Baby and Me, to guide the pregnant client in making some new decisions in her life. The Sexual Integrity™ Program does the same with a variety of topic modules for both pregnant and non-pregnant clients.

Educational classes

These can be all on one topic such as childbirth or parenting or they can cover a mixture of topics. Classes are also available for pregnant and non-pregnant clients through The Sexual Integrity™ Program. Programs for men and fathers: Several Heartbeat affiliates have expanded their services to reach men for abortion education, decision-making consultation, parenting skills, and marriage consultation and support. Programs for men are led by male volunteers and mentors and sometimes a male paid staff leader.

Support groups/workshops

Some PRC’s have specialized support groups/workshops such as the H.E.A.R.T. (Healing the Effects of Abortion Related Trauma) program for men and women who need healing after an abortion. Other groups may be for single mothers, grandparents, fathers, or those considering adoption. The Sexual Integrity™ Program offers these group formats for clients who have experienced sexual abuse or trauma.

Job training

Some PRC’s offer limited job training such as word processing training in their offices. 

If you have questions about adding support services please contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

If you have a heart to open a pregnancy help organization then you are among the many that have a desire to meet the need of women facing unexpected pregnancies. Many pregnancy centers exist today because of the vision that God placed in the heart of an individual like you.

Pregnancy help centers are non-profit organizations established by pro-life supporters that work to assist women who have an unexpected pregnancy. Most pregnancy centers are in the United States, however many have been established overseas. They’re usually affiliated with a pro-life Christian organization such as Heartbeat International. The pregnancy centers provide pregnancy consultation, intervention and support; education and information on pregnancy adoption, abortion, sexually transmitted infections (STIs/STDs); services and referrals for ongoing needs.

Some pregnancy help organizations include medical services like ultrasound to confirm pregnancy, abortion pill reversal, and STI/STD testing. These are considered pregnancy help medical clinics.

5 Critical Questions to Answer First

1. What is the specific need to address?
2. What area and demographic needs to be served?
3. Are any other organizations serving this need for this area/demographic?
4. Is it possible to join or extend the work already existing?
5. Can the community support this need?

We suggest checking Heartbeat’s Worldwide Directory or going to www.OptionLine.org, enter your zip code to see if/what other organizations exist in your area and network with them as you pursue starting a ministry so as to not compete with funding resources in the area.

Often times, we find that a group may wish to open a center in an area where another center has been strategically planning and praying to open. You may actually be the answer to another ministries prayer! Many states have coalitions of pregnancy centers and will be a good reference for you as you start, and then as you grow your center.

Recommended Heartbeat Resources

• Built By Design
• A Vision for Your Organization
• Governing Essentials
• The LOVE Approach

Heartbeat International is here to assist you. Affiliation is complimentary the first year for brand new start-up organizations. Click here to learn more about the benefits of affiliating with Heartbeat International.

International Affiliates (outside U.S.): $70.00 USD

Click here to convert currency.

To initiate/renew your Heartbeat affiliation online, please click here:

If you are in a developing country and would like to request a scholarship to cover your affiliation fee, please contact Ellen Foell at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

 Advancing Life-Affirming Pregnancy Help Worldwide

To become an affiliate of Heartbeat International, you must review and agree to abide by the Heartbeat Principles and the Commitment of Care and Competence:

As an affiliate of Heartbeat, our agency or organization subscribes to the principles of Heartbeat and “Our Commitment of Care and Competence.” We recognize that we are autonomous in all other matters of policy and management. This includes choice of name, method of operation, and all other matters which do not violate the principles of Heartbeat International. We expressly agree that General Counsel for Heartbeat International does not act as our legal counsel, and cannot represent us in legal proceedings or give us legal advice. We understand that Heartbeat’s General Counsel is available for consultation to our agency or organization’s legal counsel. Any general legal education provided by Heartbeat’s General Counsel does not constitute the practice of law.

Check out PregnancyCareCanada.ca to see the good work and exciting initiatives of our friend Dr. Laura Lewis, Executive Director, and her team at Pregnancy Care Canada (formerly The Canadian Association of Pregnancy Support Services CAPSS) and the associated pregnancy centres. We also are excited about our joint affiliation agreement whereby all Pregnancy Care Canada affiliates gain affiliation with Heartbeat International for no additional cost.

Click here to visit the Pregnancy Care Canada website.

Heartbeat International congratulates our Australia affiliate network Pregnancy Help Australia (PHA), formerly known as the Australian Federation of Pregnancy Support Services (AFPSS), on their new leadership group and especially the new Executive Officer, Lynn Mabey. Pregnancy Help Australia is set to celebrate their 25th anniversary in 2009. The roots of this good work go back even further and intersect with the founding group that became Heartbeat International.

Click here to visit the PHA website.

The pregnancy care efforts are growing on the continent of Africa! Pregnancy Help Network now publishes a dynamic manual on how to start a pregnancy centre called “Fan Into Flame”. Gail Schreiner, President Africa Cares for Life, combined her personal experiences, insight and wisdom with the framework for Heartbeat’s own “A Vision for Your Organization” to author a manual that will equip and inspire others to establish strong efforts to help those in need. We are pleased to announce our joint affiliation agreement where affiliates in good standing of Pregnancy Help Network automatically receive all the benefits of affiliation with Heartbeat International.

Click here to access Pregnancy Help Network's website.