Maternal morbidity and mortality (complications and deaths) in women of color is an issue of national importance that’s had increased attention in recent months. Notably Vice President Kamala Harris recently marked Maternal Health Day of Action which is a nationwide call to the private and public sectors to improve maternal health in the United States.
Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health set a Diversity, Equity & Inclusion goal for FY22 to reduce major maternal morbidity and mortality in women of color, and as of Q2 has exceeded our target.
The effort began as a systemwide Penn Medicine goal in the last fiscal year.
“When we looked at complication rates at LG Health, there was a wide gap between Black and white maternity patients,” said Robert Faizon, MD, medical director, OB-GYN and patient safety officer, Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health. “Our team of physicians, nurses, nurse midwives, managers and support staff, including coders and billers, took a closer look at factors associated with higher complication rates among pregnant Black women.”
They discovered that Black women were having more hemorrhage-related issues. In response, the team developed protocols such as hemorrhage risk assessment for mothers, measurement of blood loss in childbirth and rapid interventions to prevent or avoid complications.
The maternal mortality team also shared information with our independent private practice OB-GYN colleagues at Women & Babies Hospital and reviewed patient charts to ensure standards of care were consistently being met.
“Our providers are 100% on board with these improvements,” Faizon said.
In just a year, the team closed the care gap and expanded the program to all women of color – a level of measurable success that has not gone unnoticed. In December 2021, U.S. News & World Report announced its inaugural Best Hospitals for Maternity rankings, naming Lancaster General Health as High Performing in Maternity Care (Uncomplicated Pregnancy) with top ratings for this category in Pennsylvania.
“Our success is the result of a group effort – our physicians and nursing staff are more acutely aware of what to look for, and executive leadership understands that this is a priority. As an organization, we have set the expectation that this is what is best for our patients and we are going to do everything we can to accommodate those goals,” said Geoffrey Eddowes, senior vice president, Women’s Health.