The neighborhood of Avondale develops a promising model to save lives as Hamilton County infant mortality improvement levels out
Over the past five years, Hamilton County has seen a significant drop in its infant mortality rate, resulting in fewer infant deaths than ever before. About 18 fewer babies died each year from 2013-2017 than in the previous 5 years.However, that improvement is showing signs of leveling out.In 2017, 97 babies died before their first birthday – just 1 fewer than in 2016. Our 2017 rate of infant death continues to be much higher than the national average.The three leading causes of infant death in Hamilton County from 2013-2017 were preterm birth, birth defects and sleep-related deaths. Changes in the areas of preterm birth and sleep-related deaths are driving recent improvements.
Four trends have emerged over the last 5 years:Working together, the neighborhood of Avondale has effectively eliminated extreme preterm birth and is seeing its infant deaths plummet as a result. From 2008-2012, 19.5 babies died for every 1,000 born alive in Avondale – a rate more than triple the national average. This high rate of death was driven largely by one problem: extreme preterm birth, or babies that are born before the end of the 2nd trimester. Now, after intense investment and partnership, Avondale has not seen an extreme preterm birth in over 3 years, a trend which has cut its rate of infant death by more than half.
This “Start Strong” project, funded by bi3 and led by families in Avondale working hand-in-hand with Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, UC Health, TriHealth and Every Child Succeeds, has become the strategic model that we plan to replicate in more communities with high rates of extreme preterm birth.The Ohio Department of Health recognized this remarkable feat by announcing that it will fund Phase 1 of the spread of this work into two new neighborhoods: Winton Hills and North College Hill. A new $850,000 grant will bring together partners to try to replicate the success of Avondale.Sleep-related infant deaths are now consistently below historic levels, but are still a key concern. For the 5th year in a row, Hamilton County has had fewer sleep-related deaths than our historical average. We went from an average of 16 deaths per year to 12. If our community were at the national average, we would expect 9 sleep-related deaths per year.The leading cause of local sleep-related deaths is suffocation due to babies sharing a bed with an adult and the adult rolling onto a child. Babies sleep safest Alone, on their Back and in an empty Crib.Smoking during pregnancy is falling sharply. Tobacco use is a known driver of preterm birth. Fewer women reported smoking during their pregnancies in 2017 than ever before. The maternal smoking rate has dropped 30% over the past 5 years.
Access to care is improving. 2017 saw a 21% improvement in the percent of women who received timely prenatal care. More women than ever before began prenatal care during their 1st trimester, a key factor for a healthy pregnancy. Pregnant women can call 211 to get connected to care.A new strategy to reduce infant mortality is coming this summer. For the past 9 months, the collaborative partners of Cradle Cincinnati have worked with more than 450 Hamilton County residents to develop a strategic plan for the next 5 years. In addition to continuing to focus on key drivers of infant death like spacing, smoking and sleep, this new plan will add new emphasis on more complex factors influencing our high rate of extreme preterm birth. The new plan will be released in June.“Hundreds of individuals, working collaboratively over the past 5 years, should be proud of the progress we’ve made. No longer do we have the distinction of being among the worst 10% of communities for infant mortality in the country. 88 young kids are alive today because of our collective action,” said Hamilton County Commission President Todd Portune. “However, today’s numbers mostly show that a lot of hard work remains. We are only just getting started.”You can read the full report here.