Tag Archives: teen pregnancy

South Carolina Health at a Glance: Maternal and Infant Health

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Our next installment of the 2018 Live Healthy State Health Assessment summaries covers maternal and infant health.  Because the document is 346 pages, we will summarize each section.  Check out our previous posts:  overview of the report, South Carolina demographics, leading causes of death and hospitalization, cross-cutting, and access to healthcare.

Infant Mortality

The five leading causes of infant death in South Carolina were:

  • Birth defects (85%)
  • Preterm birth and low birthweight (14.2%)
  • Unintentional injuries (9.7%)
  • Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) (6.7%)
  • Maternal complication of pregnancy (5.0%).

Targeted education and interventions focused on infant death prevention and contributing factors helps to reach audiences in greatest need.  Although the infant mortality rate decreased from 8.5 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2007 to 7.0 deaths in 2016, this rate is higher than the national infant mortality rate and the Healthy People 2020 targeted goal.

Infant Mortality_SC Health Assessment

Birth Defects

Babies affected by birth defects are at an increased risk for long-term physical, cognitive, and social challenges.  Families affected by birth defects often deal with complex medical conditions that require surgery and early intervention services within the first three years of life.  Approximately 8,074 birth defects were reported in South Carolina from 2009-2015.  Birth defect types include:  cardiovascular, central nervous system, chromosomal, orofacial, musculoskeletal, renal, genital, gastrointestinal, limb defects, and eye and ear defects.

Strategies to prevent birth defects include maintaining a healthy diet and consuming at least 400 micrograms of folic acid daily, regularly visiting a healthcare provider for chronic disease management and infection prevention, and avoiding exposure to drugs and alcohol.

Preterm Birth

Preterm birth is the live birth of a baby before 37 weeks of pregnancy.  The earlier a baby is born, the greater the chances of having health problems in the short-term and long-term for the newborn.  These health problems can include respiratory distress, bleeding of the brain, anemia, or other health issues.

In 2016, preterm birth in South Carolina was higher than the United States.  The percent of preterm birth increased as the age of the mother increased.  Approximately 14.7% of non-Hispanic Black women experienced preterm births.

Preterm birth_SC Health assessment

Low Birthweight

Low birthweight is the birth of a baby weighing less than five pounds, eight ounces.  Although some low birthweight babies are healthy, others may require special care at birth due to respiratory distress, intestinal complications, bleeding of the brain, or other health problems.  Babies born at a low birthweight also have increased risk for developing chronic health conditions later in life.

Low Birthweight_SC Health Assessment

Teen Birth

The birth rate for teenagers aged 15 to 19 has continuously declined since 1991, reaching historic lows across the United States.  Success in the decline may be attributed to increased access to long-acting reversible contraception, delayed onset of sexual activity, and effective abstinence education.  Although the teen birth rate has declined significantly from 2007 to 2016, South Carolina’s teen birth rate is higher than national rate.

Teen birth_SC Health assessment

For more information about South Carolina maternal health statistics on Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), intended pregnancy, prenatal care, breastfeeding, and pregnancy-related death, read the full Maternal and Infant Health chapter of the 2018 State Health Assessment.

 

TEAM SPARTANS moving the dial on teen pregnancy

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By Maxine Williams, APRN, FNP, BC
Upstate Region Program Director

What better way is there to observe National Teen Pregnancy Prevention Month than to recognize a county health department’s strong efforts to help reduce teen pregnancy?

To do that, we need look no further than the Spartanburg County Health Department. While no one entity or factor alone can be cited as the sole reason for the drop Spartanburg has seen in teen pregnancy rates, the county health department has done its part.

The health department has seen teenage pregnancy rates drop dramatically, due in part to a five-year grant that ended last year from the Centers for Prevention and Disease Control. While the goal was to reduce the teen pregnancy rate in the county by 10 percent, Spartanburg far surpassed that, reducing the rate 48 percent.

As it continued to work toward reducing rates, the health department participated in a learning collaborative throughout 2015 that gave it an opportunity to explore additional ways to effectively address teen pregnancy. Spartanburg was chosen for the collaborative, in part, because of its experience with addressing teen pregnancy via the CDC grant, which allowed the health department to build infrastructure in the community and take steps to increase teens’ access to services, among other things.

Spartanburg County Health Department, Upstate Region, was able to participate in the year-long experience thanks to funding from The Blue Cross Blue Shield Foundation of South Carolina. The funds were administered by the South Carolina Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy and the Center for Health Services and Policy Research (USC CHSPR) at the University of South Carolina’s Arnold School of Public Health. The SC Campaign and USC CHSPR are partnering to implement the South Carolina Adolescent Reproductive Health Institute to facilitate health clinics’ adoption of evidence-based practices that can improve teen pregnancy prevention outcomes.

Groups participating in the year-long experience devised strategies and concepts using continuous quality improvement, or CQI. TEAM SPARTANS — a name chosen by team members — developed measurable goals to improve teen service provision at the Spartanburg County Health Department.

TEAM SPARTANS implemented several innovative strategies, including assessing data to determine when teens accessed services the most and when availability of services needed to be increased to meet peak demand. As a result of these strategies, the health department was able to serve a caseload of 734 — a 36 percent increase from the previous year’s caseload of 537. The members of TEAM SPARTANS (pictured above, left to right) included Maxine Williams, Program Director; Stephanie Bobak, Operations Director; Kenya Farley, PHRN, PH Team Leader; and Mike Newman, Spartanburg County Site Supervisor.

Leadership Collaborative 3

As part of the year-long learning collaborative, Kenya Farley served on a panel to discuss TEAM SPARTANS’ project aimed at improving teen service provision.

Moving the dial downward on teen pregnancy is what National Teen Pregnancy Month is all about. Held each May, the month is set aside to raise community awareness and support of effective teen pregnancy prevention initiatives. The month also serves as a catalyst for year-round efforts to support effective pregnancy prevention strategies and programs.

U.S. teen pregnancy and birth rates have declined dramatically over the past two decades and are now at historic lows. There has been significant progress in all 50 states and among all racial/ethnic groups. That said, U.S. rates of teen childbearing remain far higher than in other comparable countries, and continued education and access to services remain key to helping teens prevent unintended pregnancy.

The Spartanburg County experience illustrates continued vigilance to help move the dial.