The March of Dimes released its 2015 Premature Birth Report Card today giving our state a “B” grade. New this year, the annual report card ranked state cities and revealed Arizona has a 9 percent preterm birth rate.
The report card grades Arizona cities with the greatest number of births on their 2013 preterm birth rates. A preterm birth is considered to occur before the 37th week of pregnancy.
According to Arizona Vital Statistics, one out of every eleven Arizona babies was born prematurely in 2014. There are things that women can do to help their health and lower the risk of having a premature baby such as quit smoking and avoid alcohol or drugs; see her health care provider for a medical checkup before pregnancy; maintain a healthy weight; work with her health care provider to control diseases such as high blood pressure or diabetes; get prenatal care early, as soon as she thinks she may be pregnant, and discuss concerns during pregnancy with her health care provider.
The Report Card coincides with a statewide prevention focus on babies born prematurely. Arizona Governor Doug Ducey signed a proclamation for November’s Prematurity Awareness Month outlining the importance of efforts to help expecting moms with a successful delivery.
ADHS administers several programs in an effort to encourage healthy behaviors leading up to and during a pregnancy.
- Healthy Babies are Worth the Wait – initiative to reduce premature births in Arizona.
- Collaborative Improvement and Innovation Network (CoIIN)– a national effort to improve infant mortality. Arizona supports two CoIIN initiatives, preconception health and Safe Sleep to reduce infant mortality.
- Strong Families Arizona – a multi-agency system of home visiting programs for pregnant women and families with young children.
- WIC – provides nutrition education, breastfeeding support, healthy foods, and referrals to health and social services.
- ASHLine – supports pregnant women in their efforts to stop smoking.
- Federally qualified health care centers – Arizona has over 150 federally qualified health care centers that can assist pregnant women with comprehensive primary care including dental, mental health and other services.
The 2015 Premature Birth Report Card provides rates and grades for major cities or counties in each state, and Puerto Rico. It also provides preterm birth rates by race and ethnicity for each state and applies a disparity index that ranks states.
The 2015 Premature Birth Report Card provides rates and grades for major cities or counties in each state !
Thanh for sharing !
How about mentioning lower prematurity rates with midwifery care. #untiemymidwifeshands #noredtape #birthingrights #midwife #bestcare #marchofdimes #lowerprematurebirthwithmidwife
Thank you for sharing this information. I have another suggestion for improving the outcomes for babies and reducing premature births….. supporting midwifery care. The research has been done, midwifery care is safe both in and out of the hospital.
-Amey Clark RN
18 year OB nurse.
Thank you for encouraging healthy options for families. An additional critical step in supporting healthy birth outcomes is working with your local midwives and updating rules and regulations so that they can fully do what they are trained to do. This is a great example of why it is so important that the Department of Health value and support midwives: “Women who received midwife-led continuity of care were less likely to experience preterm birth…” (http://www.cochrane.org/CD004667/PREG_midwife-led-continuity-models-versus-other-models-care-childbearing-women)
Hello Dir Christ!
Just wondering if you had a chance to read this article?
http://www.cochrane.org/CD004667/PREG_midwife-led-continuity-models-versus-other-models-care-childbearing-women
I will highlight specifically “Women who received midwife-led continuity of care were less likely to experience preterm birth, or lose their baby before 24 weeks’ gestation, and to lose their baby overall”
Once again we see how midwives continue to help the health of Arizona babies and thus Arizona families.
Thank you for sharing this report card!
So why isn’t the importance of midwife-led continuity of care mentioned in this report card as there is obviously research based evidence to show that it too plays a positive part?
http://www.cochrane.org/CD004667/PREG_midwife-led-continuity-models-versus-other-models-care-childbearing-women
Thank you for this report. We were blessed to have 2 healthy babies at home with our midwives attending. We know that their level of care has contributed to arizona’s improving birth stats but I’m concerned about the restrictions being placed on the midwives now. Would you care to comment on the law suit?
Cara,
When the whole world is noticing the importance of midwives, how disappointing that Arizona is not prouder of the midwives who have served families with such dedication and love in this state. Please note the Lancet Series on Midwives here: http://www.thelancet.com/series/midwifery. This series, among so many out now by the World Health Organization, the International Confederation of Midwives, as well as numerous studies by the Midwives Alliance of North America, confirm the importance of midwives as specialists in non-intervention in maternal and newborn care for the low risk woman and birthing person.
More importantly, as demonstrated numerous times in Arizona, the CONSUMER wants midwives to have a full scope of practice to be able to serve families in the best way we know how and in collaboration with other medical persons. They want the Midwifery Model of Care in EVERY setting that midwives work, including out of the hospital, such as birth center and home birth. As a midwife in Arizona, it has been so disappointing to see Arizona’s Health Department fall behind in this international and national recognition of the importance of midwives.
The treatment of midwives recently is not respectful of the fact Arizonans have used licensed midwives since the 1970s. With a supportive department, midwifery could truly blossom. I am a proud Arizona midwife, but find that I cannot even fully serve my community in Arizona – persons of color and/or the underserved who are more vulnerable in this state. I am not ‘allowed’ to continue care past 6 weeks postpartum, something so valuable in my community. Or, re-continue care with my families in the event of a transport, which is financially devastating since my families cannot often afford care with an OB, whereas midwives are more affordable. What is interesting is that the patient in this scenario has actually been ‘released’ by the OB to go home, and the OB often refers them back into my care. Yet, the Arizona Department of Health has determined this isn’t possible.
The high fees I have been charged (close to $2000 at this point) is excessive when I do almost 80% nonprofit work – and most midwives do not make a great deal of money.
More discriminatory is the fact I cannot sit on the Advisory Board for Midwives required by the state, when I am exceptionally qualified to do so and have the voice for underrepresented patients, due to having turned in LATE REPORTS, not for anything more offensive. Why aren’t the midwives being asked to tell the STATE who they want to represent them? In addition, the so-called “advisory board” is hostile, and whereas the state DOES NOT allowed most midwives, who are truly motivated and experienced, to sit on the board (since most of us now have ‘late reports’), the state clearly vets and appoints anti-homebirth physicians (so much evidence to support this – your OB on the panel was both pro-life AND anti-homebirth, accusing homebirthers of “not thinking of the baby” in a recent legislative session). How is this representative of midwives and the families we serve? Even our pro-life home birth families “think about” their babies! So, now the abuse filters down even to our families by those who are supposed to ‘represent’ us at this Advisory Board.
The history of midwifery is one in which midwives have always served those who have been the hardest to serve – those who live in rural communities, the vulnerable who cannot afford other care (and midwives often discount, barter, even attend free rather than see a person without care), or attend those who are desperate to have a vaginal, natural birth in the face of medical care that has created interventions and non-medically indicated c-sections. The states in the U.S with the best models of midwifery care are those who ensure that midwives have autonomous representation, are VERY supportive of midwives and the work they do, and recognize that high fines and harsh enforcement are NOT helpful. In addition, I think the state is lying to stakeholders about the quality of the data being collected. With the existence of the MANA Division of Research, where midwives can do confidential data collection, why is the State of Arizona spending money to create ANOTHER system of data collection…using a tool that is not confidential and is also used to enact punitive action against the midwives? How does the state think they are doing effective data collection?
I appreciate the ability to comment, and hope this comment is read and reflected on. I am also happy, at ANY time, as a local midwife serving a vulnerable population, or as the President of the Midwives Alliance of North America, to come and tell you all about midwives and the many efforts happening nationwide regarding regulation of out of hospital birth.
Sincerely,
Marinah V Farrell
Arizona Midwives LM143 and the President of the Midwives Alliance of North America
Hi Director Christ,
Thank you for your concern about the prevalence of premature birth in Arizona. I would like to point out that a systematic review carried out by the Cochrane Library of 13 trials involving over 16,000 women determined that women who have access to midwife-led continuity of care are 23% less likely to have a baby born prematurely.
Preterm birth is the major cause of early death and major disability for babies in the United States. What will the Arizona Department of Health Services do to ensure that families in Arizona have more access to midwifery services, and thus reduce their risk of preterm babies and the lifelong consequence that result?
Certainly, placing more restrictions on midwives and actively engaging in illegal investigations of midwives and their client’s medical records is a step in the wrong direction.
Midwife care needs to be a part of our AZ woman’s health! While all 3 of my babies had healthy births, only one was a birth experience I was in control of and cherish( that one was with a midwife!) my first two Babies were delivered at a hospital where I was directed not supported. The entire birth experience should be considered not just a healthy baby. Please support our midwives who provide mothers with a sacred birth experience.
Thank you for sharing this. It is nice to see that the state of Arizona supports mamas and babes with these programs. While I agree that these programs you listed are extremely helpful to Arizona mamas and babes, I think it is crucial to also mention to importance of quality prenatal care and how research has repeatedly proven that midwifery care is superior in a low risk pregnancy. Please support midwifery care in our state. #untiemymidwiveshands
I have just come across this information, and I am APPALLED at the restrictions being imposed on Licenced Midwives in Arizona!
Okay, I don’t live in Arizona, 8but both my daughter and my daughter-in-law had home births with midwives that they had built strong relationships with over the course of their pregnancies. I was there as their labour coach, and also accompanied my daughter on numerous midwife appointments. I was hugely impressed with the wisdom that they had during the whole procedure.
Arizona needs to come out of the dark ages regarding midwifery!!! |
[…] In a blog post about the report card, Arizona Department of Health Services Director, Cara M. Christ, points out that according to Arizona Vital Statistics, one out of every 11 Arizona babies was born prematurely in 2014. ADHS has several programs to encourage healthy behaviors leading up to and during pregnancy. […]