Page 18 - 2017 Nursing Annual Report | Summa Health

Exemplary Professional
Practice

Challenges in the
obstetric population

Compared to 26 other industrialized nations, the United States ranks last with the
highest infant mortality rates (National Vital Statistics Report). Of the U.S. State data,
Ohio ranks 45th in the nation in overall infant mortality with a rate of 6.8 deaths per
1,000 births, and last in African American infant mortality with a rate of 15.2/1000 –
three times that of white women. Akron zip codes 44320 and 44307 have some of the
highest infant mortality rates in the state, where babies are more likely to die before
their first birthday than in any other region.

Ohio’s Call to Action: Too Many Babies Summa has far exceeded the state average and met our
Are Dying! targets with 99.8 percent (2016) and 99.7 percent (2017)
of candidates receiving appropriate treatment. Patients
The Ohio House of Representatives adopted House who develop preterm labor are provided with antenatal
Concurrent Resolution No. 12, declaring Ohio’s rate of steroids to promote fetal lung development. Since 2012,
infant mortality “...a public health crisis that deserves we have been a top performer in the Joint Commission’s
significant and immediate action by all stakeholders...” Perinatal Core Measure Antenatal Steroid Administration
Significant causes cited for infant deaths include preterm ensuring that 100 percent of women at risk for preterm
birth (leading cause); birth defects, maternal pregnancy birth received steroids to reduce the risk of respiratory
complications, sudden unexpected infant death (SUID) and distress in the newborn.
injuries (suffocation/strangulation related to unsafe sleep).
39 weeks
The Ohio Hospital Association Strategic Plan to Prevent
Infant Mortality identified six key strategies to address the Summa has been a leader in the community and we
most common preventable causes of infant death: made the decision that we would put a “hard stop” on
• Safe Sleep elective inductions of labor prior to 39 completed weeks
• 39+ Weeks gestation, and discourage elective inductions before term
• Breastfeeding (41 weeks) unless the cervix is “ripe” or ready for labor.
• Safe Spacing We created an elective induction form for physicians
• Access to Care and midwives to complete in the outpatient offices to
• Progesterone document patients meeting the criteria for a safe elective
induction. We have met our goal for “zero” early elective
Prematurity – Largest Cause of Infant Mortality delivery for 31 quarters straight.

Summa is part of the Ohio Perinatal Quality Collaborative Safe sleep
(OPQC), a consortium of hospitals, professional
organizations and health departments which uses An astonishing 7 percent of infant deaths are related to
improvement science methods to reduce preterm births unsafe sleeping practices. In infant mortality reviews,
and improve perinatal and preterm newborn outcomes in unsafe sleep circumstances contributing to infant deaths
Ohio. Two primary interventions include screening of all were: bed-sharing and supervising adult was impaired at
women for risk factors for preterm birth and treatment of the time of the incident. Second-hand smoke exposure
at-risk patients with progesterone. was reported for 35 percent of infant sleep-related deaths.
Of the infant death reviews in which a crib or bassinet was
the incident location, 76 percent reported object(s) found
in the sleep space, blankets (73 percent) and pillows (27
percent), 35 percent multiple objects in the crib.

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