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Ensuring that women with high-risk pregnancies get to the right hospital in a timely manner for their delivery is the primary goal of the new Obstetrics (OB) System of Care. The Mississippi Board of Health recently passed the final rules and regulations for the system, which took effect on February 13. The OB System of Care marks the fourth system of care in the state, joining systems for heart attacks, strokes and trauma, that will save lives and provide the proper level of care for pregnant women and their babies. Mississippi is the first state in the nation to have four systems of care.
“If we can get a mom and her baby to the right level of care as quickly as possible, it will undoubtedly save lives,” said Dr. Dan Edney, State Health Officer and MSDH Executive Director. “When completely built out, this system will activate the moment a 9-1-1 call is made. Mothers with high-risk factors will have been pre-identified so the wheels can be set in motion to transport them to the best-suited hospital, not necessarily the closest, by ground or air ambulance. This system will provide coordination, collaboration, and cooperation among doctors, nurses, EMS, hospitals, community health workers and organizations.”
The most current Mississippi Infant Mortality Report showed the infant mortality rate at 9.2 per 1,000 births in the state, compared to 5.6 per 1,000 births nationally. The latest report by the Mississippi Maternal Mortality Review Committee determined that 83% of maternal deaths it reviewed were preventable. The maternal mortality rate is 23.2 per 100,000 live births, with a national rate of 18.6 per 100,000 live births.
The OB System of Care is designed to begin working with women early in a pregnancy to provide resources for a healthy mom and baby to thrive before, during and after delivery.
Some of the factors involved in the deaths are linked to rural travel times, less than adequate prenatal care, lack of transparency with birthing programs “locate” data, EMS difficulties, NICU availability, lack of regional perinatal systems, and less than adequate transfer systems. MSDH, working closely with the Division of Medicaid and other organizations, will continue the buildout of the system with more providers and the implementation of new technology as it arises.
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