Tagged With "African American"
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Recent return from deployment tied to preterm births for military women [Reuters Health News]
(Reuters Health) - Military women who give birth within six months of returning from deployment are twice as likely to have premature babies compared to other soldiers, a U.S. study suggests. Researchers examined data on 12,877 births to U.S. soldiers from 2011 to 2014 and found that, overall, 6.1 percent of these deliveries were premature. But for mothers who had returned from deployment within the past six months, 11.7 percent of deliveries were premature, versus just 5.9 percent of births...
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Redesigning Maternal Care: OB-GYNs Are Urged to See New Mothers Sooner And More Often [npr.org]
This story was co-published with ProPublica . Doctors would see new mothers sooner and more frequently, and insurers would cover the increased visits, under sweeping new recommendations from the organization that sets standards of care for obstetrician-gynecologists in the U.S. The 11-page "committee opinion" on " Optimizing Postpartum Care ," released Monday by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists , represents a fundamental re-imagining of how providers, insurers and...
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Reducing Maternal Mortality [nytimes.com]
Women in the United States face a far greater risk of dying from childbirth complications than in many other wealthy countries. Now the federal government has taken a step toward addressing the problem with the Preventing Maternal Deaths Act , signed in December, which will provide federal grants to states to investigate the deaths of women who die within a year of being pregnant. A report released by the Commonwealth Fund in December that looked at 11 high-income countries found that...
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[Repost] Trauma-informed Care: It Takes More Than a Clipboard and a Questionnaire
California is about to launch an ambitious campaign to train tens of thousands of Medi-Cal providers to screen children and adults up to age 65 for trauma, starting on January 1, 2020. It is well-established that the early identification of trauma and providing the appropriate treatment are critical tools for reducing long-term health care costs for both children and adults. Research has shown that individuals who experienced a high number of traumatic childhood events are likely to die...
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Senator Harris to Reintroduce Maternal CARE Act [CWA E Newsletter]
Sen. Kamala Harris has announced a proposal to address the worsening maternal mortality crisis in the U.S., and deep racial disparities in care across the country. Harris' proposal highlights the fact that African American women are three times as likely to die from pregnancy-related complications compared to their white counterparts - and not just among poor women, according to the CDC . Harris proposes to create a new $25 million program aimed at fighting racial bias in maternal care by...
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Some 350 Florida Leaders Expected to Attend Think Tank with Dr. Vincent Felitti, Co-Principal Investigator of the ACE Study; Expert on ACEs Science
Leaders from across the Sunshine State will take part in a “Think Tank” in Naples, FL, on Monday, August 6, to help create a more trauma-informed Florida. The estimated 350 attendees will include policy makers and community teams made up of school superintendents, law enforcement officers, judges, hospital administrators, mayors, PTA presidents, child welfare experts, mental health and substance abuse treatment providers, philanthropists, university researchers, state agency heads, and...
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Suffering in Silence Mood Disorders Among Pregnant and Postpartum Women of Color
Pregnancy and childbirth can bring joy and fulfillment to a woman's life. They can also bring anxiety, depression, and stress. If left untreated, postpartum depression and other mood disorders can grow severe and even fatal for both the mother and her child. The American Psychological Association estimates that 1 in 7 women experience postpartum depression, yet the true statistic is unknown, as most women do not recognize the symptoms associated with the condition. 1 According to the World...
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The prevalence and clinical correlates of adverse childhood experiences in a cross-sectional study of primary care patients with cardiometabolic disease or risk factors (BMC)
From the article: To our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate the incidence and clinical correlates of ACEs in primary care patients who already have cardiometabolic disease or are at elevated risk based on conventional risk factors. Open Access LINK to article Background Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are associated with risk of poor adult health, including cardiometabolic diseases. Little is known about the correlates of ACEs for adults who have already developed...
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Trauma-Informed Care as a Universal Precaution: Beyond the Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire [jamanetwork.com]
By Nicole Racine, Teresa Killam, and Sheri Madigan, JAMA Pediatrics, November 4, 2019 Experiences of childhood adversity are common, with more than 50% of adults reporting having experienced at least 1 adversity as children and more than 6% exposed to 4 or more adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). There is currently a controversial debate in the medical field as to whether the ACEs questionnaire, which asks about abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction before age 18 years, should be...
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Uninsured Native Americans Often Lack Needed Prenatal Care [ocregister.com]
By Yesenia Amaro and Deepa Bharath, Center for Health Journalism News Collaborative, October 4, 2019 For almost two years, Sylvia Valenzuela relied on the federal Indian Health Service system to get the primary care she needed. But when she had to see an OB-GYN for her prenatal care, she was on her own. What followed, she said, was a nightmare in which she struggled to obtain and keep Medi-Cal coverage, leaving her uninsured for a critical stretch of her pregnancy. Valenzuela says she would...
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Violence, Drugs, Mental Illness May Account for Half of Maternal Deaths [PsychCentral.com]
Intimate partner violence, substance use and mental illness may be as threatening to health and survival during pregnancy as medical issues, according to a new study. In the study, researchers from the Boston University Medical Center note that mortality rates for pregnant women are increasing in the U.S. Many are due to medical causes thought to be directly related to pregnancy, such as hemorrhage, thromboembolism and hypertensive disease. Although substance use, serious mental illness and...
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Intimate Partner Violence Screening and Intervention: The American College of Preventive Medicine Position Statement (Abstract) [sciencedirect.com]
By Tanya M. Phares, Kevin Sherin, Suzanne Leonard Harrison, et al., American Journal of Preventive Medicine, December 2019 The purpose of this paper is to produce a position statement on intimate partner violence (IPV), a major sociomedical problem with recently updated evidence, systematic reviews, and U.S. Preventive Services Task Force guidelines. This position statement is a nonsystematic, rapid literature review on IPV incidence and prevalence, health consequences, diagnosis and...
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“Landmark” Maternal Health Legislation Clears Major Hurdle [propublica.org]
Update, Dec. 13, 2018 at 8:15 p.m. ET: On Thursday evening, the Senate unanimously passed its version of the Preventing Maternal Deaths Act, sending it to the president to sign. Congress moved a big step closer on Tuesday toward addressing one of the most fundamental problems underlying the maternal mortality crisis in the United States: the shortage of reliable data about what kills American mothers. The House of Representatives unanimously approved H.R. 1318 , the Preventing Maternal...
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Maternal Mental Health Awareness
Please see the link below for the MATERNAL MENTAL HEALTH infographic for social media ACEs Intern/Volunteer, Elizabeth Najmabadi MPH, and myself developed to bring awareness to Perinatal Mental Health. Thank you to all who gave us support and feedback as well as the Perinatal Mental Health Partnership community partners for allowing me to post organizational logos on the flyer to show where maternal mental health services are available for mothers in Sonoma County. Please share with your...
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Milwaukee doulas ask for the community's help to lower black maternal and infant mortality [Journal Sentinel]
Vanessa Johnson is a Milwaukee doula and registered nurse. She provides doula services — prenatal, and labor and delivery support for expectant mothers — to her clients through A Miracle Happened Birth Services . ... A few months ago, Johnson said, she was talking with some of her colleagues about the same things their conversations always come back to. How the infant and maternal mortality rates are unacceptably high in Wisconsin. And how they're even higher in the African-American...
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Mommy Mentors Help Fight The Stigma Of Postpartum Mood Disorder (npr.org)
Becoming a mother is often portrayed as a magical and glorious life event. But many women don't feel joyful after giving birth. In fact, according to the American Psychological Association , almost 15 percent of moms suffer from a postpartum mood disorder like anxiety or depression, making maternal mental health concerns the most common complication of childbirth in the U.S. And even though these mental illnesses affect millions of women each year, new research shows 20 percent of mothers...
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“Momnibus” Bill Package Targets Black Maternal Health Disparities (Patient Engagment)
By Sarah Heath, March 12, 2020, Patient Engagement A package of legislative proposals aims to prop social determinants of health funding to target black maternal health disparities. The package of nine bills, titled the Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act of 2020 , is sponsored by Representatives Lauren Underwood and Alma Adams, as well as Senator Kamala Harris. The legislation builds on existing laws focusing on black maternal health disparities specifically by supplanting efforts to address...
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Parental Depression and Its Impact on Child and Family Well-Being [CANTASD]
Parental Depression and Its Impact on Child and Family Well-Being On March 9, 2018, The National Child Abuse and Neglect Technical Assistance and Strategic Dissemination Center ( CANTASD ) hosted a Digital Dialogue with Jessica Dym Bartlett, the Deputy Program Area Director for Early Childhood Development & Child Welfare at Child Trends . The conversation focused on the impact of parental depression on child and family well-being . This [ ARTICLE ] document summarizes the conversation...
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Perinatal Trauma Informed Care and the Trauma Sensitive Intake
Monday, March 4, marks the beginning of Birth Psychology Month for the Association for Prenatal and Perinatal Pyschology and Health (APPPAH). This monthlong celebration features a panel of speakers around trauma informed practices for pregnancy, birth, and postpartum care. APPPAH received a grant for this project, so live lectures are free. Our first two speakers will be on Monday at 7 pm and 8:30 pm Eastern time. Jennie Birkholz, Principal of Breakwater Light, LLC, Trauma informed educator...
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Petaluma Health Center leads effort to link women to services
Sonoma County was one of six sites selected nationally to participate in a CityMatCH practice collaborative to prevent substance exposed pregnancies. In 2012 Rebecca Munger CNM, PHN the Sonoma County Maternal, Child, Adolescent Health Coordinator lead a broad coalition of reproductive health champions who worked across sectors and settings to develop a trio of strategies to reduce substance exposed pregnancies. The first strategy developed with CDC and WHO technical support was a bundled...
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Postpartum Anxiety Is an Epidemic Among American Mothers. Why Does It So Often Go Undiagnosed? (Time Magazine)
By Sarah Menkedick, March 20, 2020, for Time As a new mother, I worried about mouse poop in the small cabin where I lived. About fracking chemicals in the water. About glyphosate in the oatmeal. About flame retardants in pajamas. About phthalates in toys. Although it constantly overwhelmed me, I thought my anxiety was normal, even necessary. After all, it was my job to protect my child. When I mentioned my fear at my six-week follow-up appointment after birth—the sole instance of medical...
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Pregnant Behind Bars: What We Do And Don't Know About Pregnancy And Incarceration [NPR]
There are 111,616 incarcerated women in the United States, a 7-fold increase since 1980. Some of these women are pregnant, but amid reports of women giving birth in their cells or shackled to hospital beds , prison and public health officials have no hard data on how many incarcerated women are pregnant, or on the outcomes of those pregnancies. A study published in The American Journal of Public Health Thursday changes that. The study included 57 percent of the US prison population (New...
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Prenatal Strategies to Support Families in Iowa
How can we build a sturdy foundation for children from the start? This updated white paper from the Iowa ACEs 360 Coalition examines the stress expecting mothers in Iowa are experiencing and prenatal strategies to create the best outcomes for the whole family.
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Preventable trauma in childhood costs north America and Europe US$ 1.3 trillion a year [WHO]
By World Health Organization (photo by WHO/Malin Bring) The findings of a new study on the life-course health consequences and associated annual costs of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) show that preventable trauma in childhood costs north America and the European Region US$ 1.3 trillion a year. The article, published in the Lancet and co-authored by Dinesh Sethi and Jonathon Passmore, Programme Manager, Violence and Injury Prevention, WHO/Europe, looks at the legacy of ACEs and their...
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Whole People Series & Study Guide (www.pbs.org)
There's a fantastic five-part series, Whole People , done by PBS, " spotlighting the impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACES) through personal and community stories. It explores the long-term costs to personal well-being and our society. While much work needs to be done, there are many innovative developments to prevent and treat ACES. We all play a role in becoming a whole people." It's amazing. The five topics covered are as follows: Childhood Trauma Healing Communities A New...
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Why Aren't We Talking About Postpartum Mood Disorders in Immigrant Women [PMag.com]
About six weeks after she gave birth to her first son, Jaya, an immigrant from India to the United States, began to suffer feelings of inadequacy as a mother. She felt sad, helpless, useless to her newborn and husband. She imagined her death and described it to her mother over long-distance calls. "I told her that I felt reckless," she says. "I didn't feel the need to be careful about myself and my safety." Jaya (not her real name) began to cross busy intersections with less caution, hoping...
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Young adults with PTSD may have a higher risk of stroke in middle age (UNC Healthcare)
Lindsey Rosman, Ph.D., assistant professor in the division of cardiology, is the lead author of the study, the story was published on Oct 17, 2019, for UNC Healthcare and UNC School of Medicine. CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Oct. 17, 2019 — Young adults who suffer from posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may be more likely to experience a transient ischemic attack (TIA) or major stroke event by middle age, raising the risk as much as other better-known risk factors , according to new research...
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Youth Suicides, County-Level Poverty Go Hand in Hand [medpagetoday.com]
By Elizabeth Hlavinka, MedPage Today, October 28, 2019 Suicides among children were more concentrated in high-poverty areas, a researcher said here. Of 20,982 suicides to occur from 2007 to 2016, poverty-stricken counties had significantly higher suicide rates than counties with lower levels of poverty, and the rate increased along with poverty concentration, such that children in areas with the highest poverty levels (≥20%) were more than one-third more likely to die by suicide than kids in...
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Babies born to mothers using WIC are 33% less likely to die in 1st year of life: Study (ABC News)
By Dr. Monica Saxena, December 5, 2019, ABC News. The study compares mothers who are on the program to those who aren't. The children of low-income mothers who benefit from the federal government's Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children are one-third less likely to die during their first year of life than babies born to mothers without WIC benefits, according to a new study. The study, published in the Journal of American Medicine, comes as many federal...
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Campaign for Trauma Informed Policy and Practice (CTIPP) Recognized by APA!
Less then 5 years ago long-time trauma informed advocates, Sandra Bloom, MD and Andrea Blanch, PhD, brought together a small group of similarly-minded folks to talk about forming a new national organization focused on trauma informed policy and practice. Months later the Campaign for Trauma Informed Policy and Practice CTIPP was born. In May of 2019, CTIPP was selected by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) to receive its Distinguished Service Award for meritorious service to the...
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CERCH: the connection between blood pressure and fear of deportation in women of Mexican origin
MCAH professor Kim Harley and Brenda Eskenazi of Center for Environmental Research and Children's Health (CERCH), and MCAH program head Julianna Deardorff co-authored a recent study in the Journal of the American Heart Association on the positive correlation between fear of deportation and increased blood pressure among women of Mexican origin. The study was highlighted in an article on cnn.com . Read the CNN article about the study here .
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Civil Unrest in the Context of Chronic Community Violence: Impact on Maternal Depressive Symptoms [AJPH.AphaPublications.org]
Objectives. To examine changes in maternal–child health surrounding the April 2015 civil unrest in Baltimore, Maryland, following Freddie Gray’s death while in police custody. Methods. We conducted cross-sectional Children’s HealthWatch surveys January 2014 through December 2015 in pediatric emergency departments and primary care clinics on maternal–child health and June 2015 through October 2015 on daily and community routines. We used trend analysis and piecewise logistic regression to...
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CMS Issue Brief: Improving Access to Maternal Health Care in Rural Communities
In an ideal maternal health system, all women would have access to comprehensive, seamless medical care with links to behavioral, economic, and social supports. Additionally, they would be engaged with this system before, during, and after pregnancy. Across the United States, many women are not receiving care in this ideal system, and women in rural communities face unique challenges that make it harder for them to reach this ideal or any care at all in some cases. Because maternal health...
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Effects of Preterm Birth
A baby born prematurely often spends that crucial time for attachment and development of neural pathways in the NICU
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F.D.A. Approves First Drug for Postpartum Depression [nytimes.com]
The first drug for women suffering postpartum depression received federal approval on Tuesday , a move likely to pave the way for a wave of treatments to address a debilitating condition that is the most common complication of pregnancy. The drug works very quickly, within 48 hours — a significant improvement over currently available antidepressants, which can take two to four weeks to have an effect, if they work at all. Experts say the new treatment will provide immediate relief for...
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First Round of Grants Awarded from Preventing Maternal Deaths Act [ACOG]
August 16, 2019 Washington, DC -- Ted L. Anderson, MD, PhD, president of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), released the following statement regarding the announcement by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that 24 awards, supporting 25 states, were made for the Enhancing Reviews and Surveillance to Eliminate Maternal Mortality (ERASE MM) Program: Legislation signed into law in December 2018 funds maternal mortality review committees “The...
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From the CDC: National Black Maternal Health Week
According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the maternal mortality rate has more than doubled in the United States since 1987 , and approximately 700 women in the U.S. die each year of complications related to pregnancy. In addition, data shows that considerable racial and ethnic disparities in pregnancy-related mortality exist in the U.S. which disproportionately impact black women . We know that about 60% of pregnancy-related deaths are preventable , and...
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From Treatment to Healing: Inquiry and Response to Recent and Past Trauma in Adult Health Care [Institute of Women's Health]
Abstract: In 2015, a national working group developed and published a conceptual framework for trauma-informed primary care (Machtinger, Cuca, Khanna, Dawson-Rose, & Kimberg, 2015). Since that publication, there has been increasing recognition that childhood and adult trauma underlie and perpetuate many physical and behavioral health conditions seen in health care settings and that addressing trauma could fundamentally improve the experience and efficacy of care for both patients and...
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Healthy Spaces December 2019 Webinars
Healthy Spaces: Promoting Healthy and Resilient Communities December 2019 Webinars Funding provided by the New Jersey Department of Children and Families The New Jersey Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics (NJAAP) believes that all children deserve to feel safe and secure in their home, at school, and while at play. The Healthy Spaces program aims to address adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) through partnerships with pediatric/family healthcare teams, schools and communities.
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Healthy Spaces December 2019 Webinars
Healthy Spaces: Promoting Healthy and Resilient Communities December 2019 Webinars Funding provided by the New Jersey Department of Children and Families The New Jersey Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics (NJAAP) believes that all children deserve to feel safe and secure in their home, at school, and while at play. The Healthy Spaces program aims to address adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) through partnerships with pediatric/family healthcare teams, schools and communities.
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A Message from the President of the Illinois Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics
Dear Illinois ACE Connection members, Children and families from all demographic and socioeconomic backgrounds in Illinois experience trauma, adversity, and chronic stress. Social determinants such as where we live, work, and play, can further exacerbate positive or negative physical, emotional, and behavioral health issues. The critical factor that determines if a child, family, and/or community can manage trauma, adversity, and chronic stress successfully is resilience : the process by...
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ACEs Science Champion Series: Dr. Angela Bymaster: This Faith-Based Physician Integrates ACEs Science with Healing Arts
Dr. Angela Bymaster, a family physician at Washington Elementary School in San Jose, CA, operates her clinic in a portable unit on the school property.
Because the unit faces students as they are dropped off by their families, she gets to “pick up the kids” before they are sent to the clinic, practicing “upstream medicine.”
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Aligning, Leveraging Medicaid Across Sectors to Improve Early Childhood [AJMC]
Eight states are participating in a project from the Center for Health Care Strategies (CHCS) that aims to break down the silos and the barriers that exist among different agencies and better connect Medicaid to early childhood programs. An infant is born into poverty, and then later, as a young child, may interact with multiple different government agencies and systems—not only Medicaid, but also perinatal health care, early intervention, child care, preschool education, and more.
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Assembly Appropriations Committee Advances Maternal Health Bills that Address Disparities in NJ Maternal Mortality Rates [Insider NJ]
Assembly Appropriations Committee Advances Maternal Health Bills that Address Disparities in NJ Maternal Mortality Rates (TRENTON) – As part of a statewide effort to address disparities in maternal mortality rates between African-American and white women, and to reverse the trend that ranks New Jersey 47 th among the states in maternal mortality with 37.3 deaths per 100,000 live births, a maternal health package introduced last month continues to advance in the Assembly with 16 measures...
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Can Paid Maternal Leave Help Address the Disparities in Maternal Mortality? (NIH)
By Rada Dagher, Ph.D., M.P.H. Posted on June 28, 2020 , National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities. Maternal mortality rates in the United States have reached an all-time high. While these rates have dropped globally in the last few decades 1 , in the United States, they have more than doubled between 1987 and 2015 2 . The picture is even grimmer for racial and ethnic minority communities, where African American and American Indian/Alaska Native women have the highest...
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ACEs and Gynecological Problems - A Conversation Starter
Gynecological problems as a result of ACEs, and particularly of Childhood Sexual Abuse (CSA), are rarely discussed in books and articles about the ACEs. The author would like to see that issue become part of the ACEs conversation.
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ACEs research roundup: ACEs, racism, promoting equity and resilience
Racial /Ethnic Disparities in Health Care Access Are Associated with Adverse Childhood Experiences , Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities Racism , Psycho-Social Stress, and Health-related Quality of Life International Journal of Maternal Child Health and AIDS Promoting equity and resilience: Wellness navigators' role in addressing adverse childhood experiences American Psychological Association Co‐Occurring Youth Profiles of Adverse Childhood Experiences and Protective Factors:...
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Infant Feeding During COVID: Strategic Planning for Pregnancy, Postpartum and Beyond [ucsf.edu]
Nationally, Black women have the lowest rates of breastfeeding initiation in comparison to any other racial/ethnic groups. Black babies are dying at twice the rate of White babies and according to the CDC, increasing breastfeeding among Black women can decrease infant mortality rates up to 50 percent. In honor of Black Breastfeeding Week (August 25th – 31st), we partnered with the BreastFriends Mommy Group in West Oakland to explore why these rates look different for Black women and...
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Addiction Born Out of ACEs and The Return of Hope [avahealth.org]
The downstream effect of childhood trauma has been well documented regarding the biological and psychosocial impacts. This presentation will highlight the neurobiological changes associated with ACEs that function as a "primer" for the onset of addiction and related behaviors. It will conclude with principles for influencing these same pathways that assist with restoration of the mind and health downstream effect of childhood trauma has been well documented regarding the biological and...
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RSVP now! FREE Learning opportunity for CA healthcare providers: Oct 1, 2020 at noon PST
RSVP now for a presentation by Susie Wiet, MD who is an integrative developmental psychiatrist with expertise in holistic treatment of trauma-addiction, dual diagnosis, and complex psychiatric disorders. Target Audience T his activity is intended for CALIFORNIA physicians, physician assistants, registered nurses, nurse practitioners, psychologists and social workers engaged in the care of patients who have experienced violence or trauma. Educational Objectives After completing these...