Mission
We
are a statewide partnership of health care professionals
and public and private organizations working to improve
perinatal health in West Virginia.
- We want health care providers to be able to best care
for pregnant women and their babies. - We encourage new laws that promote better health
for pregnant women and their babies. - We create opportunities for perinatal professionals
to share their expertise with each other. - We spread the latest knowledge about perinatal
health through educational programs. - We work to reduce tobacco and drug use
among
pregnant women and foster oral health care in
pregnant women and infants. - We study research and
trends in mother/child
health and work to distribute that information.
Blueprint to Improve Perinatal Health
In
2006, thirty-three organizations partnered to uncover reasons for
declining healthy birth outcomes in West Virginia and find solutions.
Over 200 perinatal
professionals participated in a Key Informant Survey and 90 contributed in
drafting the results of that study and recommendations: Blueprint
to Improve West Virginia Perinatal Health (2006). Then after a year's worth of focused effort, the Partnership reported on progress
implementing the Blueprint and published
Reports on the Blueprint to Improve West Virginia Perinatal Health
(2007).
West Virginia health care professionals
voiced a strong desire to participate in the process to improve perinatal care. They indicated that although many elements
of a cohesive system are present in the State, we must move
towards a statewide system rather than a fractured regional
approach. We need to utilize new methods of communication,
provide better support for medical professionals in rural areas,
better utilize our intellectual resources, and more fully
implement parent support and education programs. The West
Virginia Perinatal Partnership was born of these desires.
New Study Released on Late Pre-Term Births
The W. Va. Division of Health and Human Resources Health Statistics Center has released a new study on Late Preterm Births 1993-2007. The study reports that the rates of C-section among women with no medical risk factors increased 34.9% (4.3% to 5.8%) between 1993 and 1997 and 2003 and 2007, compared with a smaller increase of 13.0% (10.0% to 11.3%) among women with at least one medical risk factor. Read the report.
Hospitals Honored
Twenty-two hospitals across the Mountain State were honored by the West Virginia Perinatal Partnership for their participation in two initiatives: The West Virginia Obstetrical Collaborative Quality Initiative and the Hospital Self-Assessment Initiative. The awards were given during a special ceremony held during the Fifth Annual Growing Healthy Children Conference, November 12-13, 2009, at the Robert C. Byrd WVU Health Science Division in Charleston. More