• he Institute of Medicine’s landmark Crossing the Quality Chasm (2001) report identified large gaps etween health care that is and that could and should e delivered in the United States. The report identified aims for quality improvement that have been widely dopted: health care should be safe, effective, patient entered, timely, efficient, and equitable. A follow-up eport designated pregnancy and childbirth as a naional quality improvement priority area (Institute of edicine, 2003). A recent model further identified hildbearing women and infants as 1 of 8 population egments with distinct characteristics that must be ddressed to achieve the 6 aims for all (Lynn, Straube, ell, Jencks, & Kambic, 2007). This commentary preents results from Childbirth Connection’s national istening to Mothers II survey to illustrate challenges of chieving the 6 aims in this population, and identifies nitiatives that are addressing these challenges. Listening to Mothers II survey results offer an unprecdented look at experiences of US childbearing women nd their infants from before pregnancy through the ostpartum period (Declercq, Sakala, Corry, & Appleaum, 2006). Harris Interactive conducted the survey mong 1,573 women aged 18–45 who gave birth to a ingle baby in US hospitals in 2005. An appendix to he full report describes the methodology (see www. hildbirthconnection.org/listeningtomothers/).