Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2018

Description

Infant mortality is the death of an infant within the first year of life. These deaths are measured annually as a rate per every 1,000 live births and are a key indicator about maternal and infant health in a society (CDC, 2017). The U.S. infant mortality rate is very high when compared to other equally wealthy nations. Black infants die at a much higher rate than other racial groups, including in Connecticut. The city of Hartford's Department of Health and Human Services strives to reduce infant mortality by providing quality prenatal and postpartum care programs and services. In 2013, the Maternal and Child Health Division (MCHD) developed a Strategic Plan with specific objectives to monitor these deaths in the hope of reducing them. The present study analyzed the vital records of live births (N = 11,552) and infant mortalities (N = 105) from 2010 to 2015 to chart the progress on several specific goals of the MCHD by comparing Pre-Plan (2010-2012) and Post-Plan (2013-2015) groups. The comparisons show that MCHD has met its goals in several but not all areas for data available up to 2015. It is recommended that extending the Strategic Plan and, where possible, analyzing the data more quickly would encourage better-tailored objectives that can be reached in a timely manner.

Comments

Community Partner: Department of Health and Human Services, Maternal and Infant Outreach

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