Protecting our most vulnerable patients: newborns
From developing a statewide approach to infant safe sleep practices, to eliminating early elective deliveries, to informing our members about the latest obstetrical adverse events resources, IHA is striving to protect newborn babies and their mothers from harm. Here are just a few of our current maternal child health initiatives:
Safety PIN
In 2016, the Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) awarded $12.9 million in competitive grants to 10 hospitals, health care groups and nonprofit organizations through the Safety PIN (Protecting Indiana’s Newborns) grant program. As one of the 10 recipients of Safety PIN grant money, in 2017 and beyond, IHA will work with Indiana hospitals to implement a statewide approach to infant safe sleep practices and messaging to influence a reduction in infant mortality from Sudden Unexplained Infant Deaths (SUIDs) due to accidental suffocation, which is 100 percent preventable.
The Indiana Perinatal Quality Improvement Initiative
In January 2013, ISDH formed the Indiana Perinatal Quality Improvement Collaborative, co-chaired by former Indiana State Health Commissioner Dr. William VanNess, ll, and former IHA President Doug Leonard to address ongoing issues related to perinatal care.
Eliminating Early Elective Deliveries
Since 2010, IHA, the ISDH and the Indiana Perinatal Network have collaborated on efforts to reduce the number of deliveries prior to 39 weeks of pregnancy without a valid medical reason. Through quality improvement initiatives, Indiana hospitals have been successful in reducing early elective deliveries (EEDs) before 39 weeks to a rate of less than three percent, compared to 11 percent in 2012. Find out more about IHA and the ISDH Perinatal Quality Improvement Collaborative’s recommended hard-stop policy, scheduling form and consent form addressing EEDs.
Other Maternal and Child Health Resources
Visit HealthcareCommunities.org (HC), where you’ll find many obstetrical adverse event tools and resources, including a comprehensive OB resources guide. This guide includes links to perinatal safety resources, including topics of OB hemorrhage, EEDs, induction and augmentation, simulation of OB emergencies and much more.
