The Infant Mortality Rate For African Americans

Infant mortality rate constitutes the death of a baby before their first birthday. Mortality rates around the world differ tremendously with America leading the first world countries at an alarming rate of 6.1 deaths per 1,000 births. Conversely, Finland and Japan secure the last, most desirable position, with deaths totaling 2.3 per 1,000 births, as of 2010. (Ovaska-Few, 2015) In 2014, over 23,000 babies died in the United States. (CDC, 2016) Exploring the mortality rates in America brings light to a dire need for additional interventions and research as to why this developing nation has the highest rate of infant deaths before the age of 1 year old. African Americans face the worst outcomes of infant death compared to whites, Latino, and their Native American peers in North Carolina. (Ovaska-Few, 2015) This paper will explore why African American are the leading race for infant mortality and the steps that health communities need to take to address this devastating occurrence.

In African American women low birth weight has been associated with several chronic diseases, such as obesity, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus. African American women increased risk of preterm birth is a longstanding epidemiological enigma and a major public health problem(ciatation from african american womens lifetime upward economic mobility and preterm birth). To further investigate this public health problem, I have analyzed the work of previous researchers who found a correlation between chronic disease, preterm birth risk factors, and low birth weight babies in women of african descent.

In the United States, there are disparities between the different racial groups when it comes to low birth weights and premature births. Evidence of this can be seen with information collected Reichman (2005). She found that African Americans have the highest rate with this accounting for 13.0%. While whites are reporting 6.5% and Hispanics are seeing figures of 6.5%. However, inside the Hispanic demographic there are differences in these numbers as Puerto Ricans have 9.4%. These disparities are not tied to economic status with many educated African American women having children of low birth weight. Whereas, there are differences between select segments of the Hispanic population in contrast with other sub groups. (Reichman, 2005)

The black infant mortality rate in 2010, (11.8) was similar to the white infant mortality rate in 1980 (11.7); an unbelievable thirty year difference for a balance measure (Florida Vital Statistics Annual Report, 2012). Currently, in the local community of Orange County, Florida the infant mortality rate exceeds that of the US at 7.5, and the rate is also doubled in African American women at 13.5, wheres it is 5.6 for births by white women (Florida Charts, 2014). Per Florida Charts (2014), disorders related to short gestation (pre-term birth – less than 37 weeks of pregnancy) and low birth weight, followed by sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) are the leading causes of infant deaths in African American births in Orange County, which is relative to the rest of the

The U.S. infant mortality rate is 5.7 per 1000 births and 1.5 in Canada although has declined over the past several decades (O'Neill & O'Neill, 2007). Low-birth weight babies have a better chance at survival in the U.S. than in Canada due to advances in medical technology and expenditures on intensive care units (O'Neill & O'Neill, 2007). The reason there are more infant mortality rates in the U.S. is because there are more infants born weighing very little than compared to Canada.

The horrifying pregnancy mortality rates and health disparities that exist between races are striking as well as terrifying to me. Although I was aware of the existence of health disparities, I was still taken back by the discrepancies in pregnancy-related mortality ratios of “12.7 deaths per 100,000 live births” in white women, to “43.5 deaths per 100,000 live births” in black women (CDC, n.d). Through root cause analyses, as well as reflection on the analogy provided in Levels of Racism: A Theoretic Framework and a Gardener’s Tale, it is clear that in order to effectively address and make positive change in the aforementioned ratios, we must focus on correcting institutionalized racism, personally mediated racism and internalized racism.

Furthermore, most births were analyzed states of a hospital, because most hospitals shown at CSL were located in urban centers, our results may not generalize women experience in the most rural regions where the factors alternatives for SGA risk may be more or less influential than those arising from the social context of racial and socioeconomic inequality in an urban environment. The effects observed throughout the state here are potentially actionable, but certainly not negate any local effect that might be present. Finally, we analyze only three indicators of structural racism, and these indicators have not fully understood the ways in which the practices and policies at the state level systematically disadvantaged members of the black population, one of the trends dictate the health of the population. Further work is needed to develop quantitative indicators of structural racism and understand how to conceptualize and directly measure racism and its adverse health

Since this demographic faces many internal and external barriers, services have arisen in the DC area to provide aid. On a broader level, programs like WIC and Medicaid provide appropriate food and medical care to this population. However, on the local level, organizations such as Mary’s Center, the Community of Hope, and the Developing Families Centers have provided numerous minorities with health and prenatal care (Bowser). Out of these organizations, the Community of Hope and the Developing Families Center specifically target low income and pregnant African Americans.

This article highlights an evaluation conducted used information from CDC’s pregnancy Mortality Surveillance process. Threat reasons for being pregnant-associated homicide have been examined. (being pregnant-associated homicide was once outlined as a loss of life for the period of or inside one 12 months of being pregnant). Homicide was found to be a main intent of pregnancy-associated injury deaths amongst females from 1991–1999. The being pregnant-associated murder ratio used to be 1.7 per one hundred,000 live births. Chance causes included age more youthful than two decades, Black race, and late or no prenatal care

Present data trends in infant mortality for the U.S. from the first and last available year.

According to Women’s Health 2011 the national life expectancy for a baby born in 2008 is 77.8 years old. This report also shows that in 2009 nearly three hundred thousand women identified themselves as part of the NHPI group, of that number 20.7 percent reported being in fair to poor health versus the 13 percent of White American women. Finally the Office of Minority Health (OMH) reports in 2002 that the infant mortality deaths (per 1,000 live births) for Native Hawaiians were 9.6 which were higher than the rate for Asian Americans at 4.8.

In 2013, 16.3% non-Hispanic black infants were born preterm, 10.2% non-Hispanic white and 11.3% Hispanic infants. The preterm birth disparities between white and black infants still exists. Hispanic women account 1 out of every 4 which is 23.2% in U.S alone. The 2013 preterm birth rate for black infants was 60% higher than the rate for non-Hispanic white infants and 44% higher than the rate for Hispanic infants (March of Dimes, n.d). The impact of low weight babies are extremely high, not only on physical but emotional and financial aspect as well. Both the families and the community may have mixed emotional feelings. For the first time parents or even to other parents, having low weight babies or preterm infants can be costly and at times,

The Social Determinants of Infant Mortality and Birth Outcomes in Western Developed Nations: A Cross-Country Systematic Review, shows that there is a correlation between neighbourhood socioeconomic status and adverse birth outcomes, as well as a positive correlation to racial/ethnic subgroups. These indicators also involve “income level, poverty, education, employment, occupation, housing, and residential stability” (Kim, 2013). Income levels, and poverty barricade access to insurance, or affording insurance, as well as having a means to transportation to seek prenatal

The racial discrimination brings other issues along with it; poverty, cultural isolation, income disparities, stress, etc. As a result African Americans still have the highest rate of infant mortality in the nation (Christopher, Simpson, 2014).

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that maternal morbidity were higher for cesarean deliveries than vaginal deliveries with African Americans having higher rates to being a victim to maternal morbidity. The two main issues linked to repeat cesarean deliveries is placenta previa and placental abruption both increasing the risk of having a