The number of children who die before their 1st birthday is a measure of the health status in the United States. Reducing the infant mortality rates across the nation takes a concerted effort to achieve this goal. Every child deserves the chance to reach 365 days (1st birthday) of life and enjoy many more birthdays to come.
Clayton County has one of the state’s highest infant mortality rates and a high number of infant deaths. Clayton County’s feto-infant mortality rate (deaths from 20-weeks gestation through the first year of life) is 22 deaths out of every 1,000 births. Georgia’s feto-infant mortality rate is 17 deaths out of every 1,000 births.
In an effort to reduce Clayton County’s infant mortality rate, the Clayton County Board of Health has developed an initiative, M.O.M.S. (Making Our Mothers Successful). This initiative utilizes collaborative, community-based strategies to improve Clayton County’s birth outcomes.
Potential causes of high-risk pregnancies and infant deaths:
- Preterm delivery and low birth weight
- Less than optimal health before a woman becomes pregnant
- Exposure to secondhand smoke during pregnancy and/or smoking during pregnancy
- Using drugs and alcohol during pregnancy
- Inadequate prenatal care after the first trimester of pregnancy
- Environmental stressors such as low economic status, social class, racism and domestic violence
- No access to healthcare
- Close spacing between pregnancies
- Infections – including reproductive tract infections, sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and periodontal (oral) infections during pregnancy
- Educating young women about reproductive health issues through preconception health programs
- Encouraging pregnant women and those women contemplating pregnancy to get regular dental examinations to help prevent, detect, and/or treat periodontal disease.
- Being aware of violence issues, during pregnancies, and making referrals to appropriate intervention programs
- Making referrals to comprehensive prenatal care provider and providing access to preconception health evaluations, smoking cessation programs, stress counseling and reduction programs, nutrition education and WIC services referrals
- Collaborating to develop more outreach and education programs that emphasize women’s health information that can be used in schools, community organizations, local businesses and places of worship