Prenatal care, reduced tobacco use key to reducing state infant mortality rate


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SOUTH DAKOTA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, January 16, 2007
CONTACT: Doneen Hollingsworth, (605) 773-3361
 
Prenatal care, reduced tobacco use key to reducing state’s infant mortality rate
PIERRE, S.D. – Getting pregnant women to stop smoking and get prenatal care are the keys to reducing infant mortality rates in South Dakota, according to a just-released report. The report is the result of an analysis of the state’s infant mortality date by a group of physicians and health officials.
The group was appointed by the Department of Health in response to an infant mortality rate of 8.2 infant deaths per 1,000 live births, well above the national rate of 6.8 deaths. The department’s just released 2005 Vital Statistics report shows South Dakota’s rate has declined to 7.2 but is still above the national rate.
“We found the infant mortality rate was six times higher for moms who received no prenatal care than for those mothers who got prenatal care in the first trimester. And for the neonatal period, from birth to 27 days, the rate was eight times higher for mothers who received no prenatal care,” said Doneen Hollingsworth, Secretary of Health. “The numbers clearly show that early and regular prenatal care improves pregnancy and health outcomes for both the mother and child.”
Hollingsworth said the post-neonatal infant mortality rate was also significantly higher among women who smoked during pregnancy. Women who were younger than 19, had not finished high school, were American Indian, or lived in a frontier county also had higher infant mortality rates.
 
The group made the following specific recommendations to meet South Dakota’s Health 2010 goal of reducing the state's infant mortality rate to 6.0:
  • Develop an education campaign to help women identify pregnancy signs and risks and emphasize the importance of getting prenatal care and not smoking. The “I Didn’t Know” campaign is expected to launch in the next few weeks;
  • Establish a training program to help doctors diagnose critically ill children and emphasize the importance of prenatal care and quitting tobacco for pregnant women;
  • Enhance the relationship between the Northern Plains Tribal Healthy Start program and state programs;
  • Work with the South Dakota Trauma System Steering Committee to improve medical response for sick and injured infants in the state’s rural and frontier counties; and
  • Strengthen existing services for teens and young mothers.
In addition to Department of Health staff, the members of the work group included Dr. Ed Mailoux, Sioux Valley Clinic pediatrician; Dr. Jeffrey Boyle, Sioux Valley Clinic obstetrician/gynecologist; Dr. Larry Fenton, Sanford School of Medicine USD Pediatrics Department Chair and neonatologist; Dr. Nanci Van Peursem, Coteau Des Prairies Clinic, Sisseton; and Willeen Druley, Aberdeen Area Indian Health Service women’s health consultant.
For a detailed data and additional information about the recommended activities, view the group’s full report on the Department of Health’s website at http://www.state.sd.us/doh.