Improve Health of Moms & Babies

Focusing on a mother’s and baby’s health before and during pregnancy, infancy and early childhood has life-long benefits.

Improving Healthy Birth Outcomes

mom and baby

Why it Matters

  • Birth outcomes measure health at birth. These outcomes determine whether a child has a “healthy start," or may have current and future health problems.
  • Certain health conditions, social and economic factors, and behaviors can increase the risk of poor reproductive and birth outcomes.

What the Data Shows

  • In Dane County, there are significant racial disparities in infant mortality rates attributable to social determinants like income, racism, access to health care, disease status, chronic stress, nutrition and weight status.
  • Complications due to preterm birth (births happening before the 37th week of pregnancy) is the leading cause of infant mortality in Dane County.

Initiatives to Improve Healthy Birth Outcomes

Fetal Infant Mortality Review

We coordinate a Fetal and Infant Mortality Review (FIMR) process to improve our understanding of the conditions that contribute to stillbirth and infant death.

FIMR provides us with more thorough and timely information about the medical and social factors that affect the families who have experienced the tragic outcome of fetal or infant death. With this information, we can collaboratively work to improve prenatal and infant health.

FIMR consists of a case review team made up of health providers, representatives from community-based organizations, public health practitioners and social service providers that:

  • Reviews summaries of medical records, other relevant records, and maternal interviews.
  • Identifies health system, social service system, and community factors that may have contributed to deaths and makes recommendations for change.
  • Works with community organizations/coalitions to identify and act on strategies to improve maternal and child health and birth outcomes.
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Community Engagement to Address Black Infant Health

Currently, babies born to Black mothers in Dane County are two times more likely than white infants to be born underweight. Babies born early are and at risk of significant health challenges (including death) in their first year of life.

We are working with the Dane County Health Council and the Foundation for Black Women’s Wellness on a collaborative community engagement campaign intended to address and identify solutions to lower the incidence of low birth weight babies born to Black women in Dane County. The project includes a series of focus groups and forums across the community to ensure that families most impacted are engaged.

Learn More

Note:

We sometimes use female gendered terms and pronouns. We do this when information is linked to programs like the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) federal program. We are subject to their terms, informational materials and guidelines. We recognize that this population also includes people who do not identify as women.

This includes:

  • People who do not identify as women
  • Some gender non-conforming people
  • People who are transgender.

We hope that everyone feels welcome in using our services.