Infant Mortality:
A health disparity between African
Americans and the General Population in
Massachusetts
Kathryn Brow, Christine Darko, Luiza Korobkova, Anthony Tran
UMass, Amherst
Brandeis University
UMass, Boston
Infant Mortality:
A health disparity between African
Americans and the General Population in
Massachusetts
Kathryn Brow, Christine Darko, Luiza Korobkova, Anthony Tran
UMass, Amherst
Brandeis University
UMass, Boston
1
INFANT MORTALITY
Definition: The death of an infant before his or
her first birthday.
2
Leading Causes of Infant Death
• Account for more than 46% of all infant deaths.
1. Low birth weight
2. Congenital malformations
3. Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
(SIDS)
4. Maternal complications
3
WHAT IS A HEALTH DISPARITY?
Health disparities refer to differences between
groups of people, these differences can affect
how frequently:
•
•
•
a disease affects a group
how many people get sick
how often the disease cause death
4
Evidence of the Disparity
Infant Mortality Disparity between Blacks and the
General Public in Massachusetts
Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Birth Report 2010
5
Infant Mortality Rates
National vs. Massachusetts
National Vital Statistics Reports, 2008
6
What causes this disparity?
•
•
•
Socioeconomic status
Education
Health care access
• Inadequacy of prenatal care
• Lack of treatment for chronic diseases
which can complicate pregnancies
7
Low Birth Weight Rates Based on
Race
Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Birth Report 2010
8
Adequacy of Prenatal Care by
Race, Education and Age
Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Birth Report 2010
9
Highest Infant Mortality Rate
Disparity is in Worcester
Massachusetts Department of Public Health, 2011 Perinatal Trends
10
Ways to reduce risk of Infant
Mortality
• Safe sleeping practices
• Adequate prenatal care
• Health campaigns
• Social Marketing
• Worcester Healthy
Start Initiative
• WIC
11
11
Mediums of Awareness Campaign
• Mediums to carry messages
included:
• bus ads
• radio ads
• church fans
• posters and cards distributed
in:
• clinics
• daycares
• agency waiting rooms
• community organizations
12
Results (according to telephone surveys)
(Campaign 1) Awareness of IM disparities
• 62% report some exposure
(Campaign 2) Proper infant sleep
position
• 48.5% report some exposure
(Campaign 3) Taking action to reduce
disparities
• 48.9% report some exposure
13
Summary
• There is a prevalent infant mortality rate
•
•
•
•
disparity between African Americans and the
general population.
Though infant mortality rate in Blacks has
decreased by half over the past 2 decades, the
disparity persists.
Data from recent years have shown increases
in infant mortality rates for Blacks, Asians and
Hispanics.
There is an inverse correlation between
prenatal care and infant mortality rates.
Evidence has shown that awareness campaigns
can greatly reduce risk of infant mortality.
14
Questions?
15
Since the beginning of this presentation
more than 36 infants
have died….
Every child deserves a chance.
16
Worcester Infant Mortality Rate
by Race
Massachusetts Department of Public Health
17
17
City Demographics
US Department of Commerce, US Census Bureau
18
REFERENCES
Date, I. (n.d.). Bureau of Health Information, Statistics, Research, and Evaluation.
Community List. Retrieved May 30, 2013, from
http://archives.lib.state.ma.us/handle/2452/36959
Health Disparities: MedlinePlus. (n.d.). National Library of Medicine - National
Institutes of Health. Retrieved June 6, 2013, from
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/healthdisparities.html
MacDorman, M. F., Hoyert, D. L., & Mathews, T. (2013). Recent Declines in Infant
Mortality in the United States, 2005–2011. National Vital Statistics Reports, 120,
6. Retrieved May 30, 2013, from
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db120.pdf
"Massachusetts QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau." State and County
QuickFacts. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 June 2013.
<http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/25000.html>.
MassCHIP. (n.d.). Mass.Gov. Retrieved May 30, 2013, from
http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/researcher/community-health/masschip/
Mathews, T. J., & MacDorman, M. F. (2013). Infant Mortality Statistics From the
2008 Period Linked Birth/Infant Death Data Set. National Vital Statistics Reports ,
60(5), 1-27.
Powers, D. A. (2013). Black&white differences in maternal age, maternal birth
cohort, and period effects on infant mortality in the US (1983-2002). Elsevier,
42(1), 1033-1045.
Rienks, J., & Oliva, G. (n.d.). Using Social Marketing to Increase Awareness of the
African American Infant Mortality Disparity . Health Promotion Practice
.
Retrieved May 30, 2013, from http://hpp.sagepub.com/content/14/3/408