Reducing Infant Mortality

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Reducing infant mortality is one of Indiana’s most pressing patient safety challenges. Best in midwest1.png

The Indiana Hospital Association (IHA) is committed to partnering with hospitals' efforts to create a highly reliable obstetric care system throughout the state of Indiana. In 2018, the state of Indiana received a challenge from Governor Eric Holcomb to reduce Indiana's infant mortality to be the lowest in the Midwest states or, in other words, to become the “Best in the Midwest by 2024".

Preliminary data released by the Indiana Department of Health shows the statewide infant mortality rate fell from 6.8 per 1,000 live births in 2018 to 6.5 in 2019. The mortality rate among Black infants fell from 13.0 in 2018 to 11.0 in 2019.  A total of 527 Indiana babies died before their first birthdays in 2019, down from 559 in 2018 and 602 in 2017.

Through funding from House Enrolled Act 1005 the Indiana Department of Health created the Safety PIN grant program. This program has allowed IHA as a recipient to develop and execute a statewide strategy to implement hospital safe sleep practices and to create the INspire Hospital of Distinction recognition program. 

INspire: Hospital of Distinction 2022 

Hoosier birthing hospitals are rising to the challenge of reducing maternal and infant mortality. IHA is pleased to celebrate them this year through the INspire Hospital of Distinction recognition program. INspire was developed to encourage the implementation of best-practice care for Hoosier moms and babies and recognize hospitals for excellence in addressing key drivers of maternal and infant health.

2022 hospital award recipients listed below earned either an INspire Hospital of Distinction or a Category of Excellence recognition based on six key areas of infant safe sleep, breastfeeding, tobacco prevention and cessation, perinatal substance use, and AIM Patient Safety Bundles: Obstetric Hemorrhage and Maternal Hypertension. These lists were updated on 12/5/2022.


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Hospitals achieving a Category of Excellence recognition by meeting the criteria in one, two, or three of the 2022 categories:
​Community Hospital of Bremen
Harrison County Hospital
​Methodist Hospitals, Northlake Campus
Methodist Hospitals, Southlake Campus
​Saint Joseph Health System: Plymouth  Medical Center
​Saint Joseph Health System: Mishawaka Medical Center
​St. Catherine Hospital
​St. Mary Medical Center








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 Hospitals achieving the Inspire Hospital of Distinction recognition by meeting the criteria in four or five of the 2022 categories:
​Adams Memorial Hospital
Ascension St. Vincent Anderson
​Ascension St. Vincent Carmel
​Ascension St. Vincent Dunn
​Ascension St. Vincent Evansville​
​Ascension St. Vincent Fishers
​Ascension St. Vincent Kokomo
​Ascension St. Vincent Randolph 
​Ascension St. Vincent Women's 
​Baptist Health Floyd
​Blufton Regional Medical Center
​Cameron Memorial Community Hospital, Inc.
​Clark Memorial Health
​Columbus Regional  Hospital
​Community Hospital Anderson
​Community Hospital East
​Community Hospital (Munster)
​Community Hospital North
​Community Hospital South
​Community Howard Regional Health
​Daviess Community Hospital
​Decatur County Memorial  Hospital
​Dukes Memorial Hospital
​Dupont Hospital
​Elkhart General Hospital
​Franciscan Health Crown Point
​Franciscan Health Indianapolis
​Franciscan Health Lafayette East
​Franciscan Health Michigan City
​Franciscan Health Mooresville
​Good Samaritan
​Goshen Health
​Greene County General Hospital
​Hancock Regional Health
​Hendricks Regional Health
​Henry Community Health
​Indiana University Health Arnett Hospital
​Indiana University Health Riley Maternity and Newborn Health
​Johnson Memorial Health
​Kosciusko Community Hospital
​Logansport Memorial Hospital
​Lutheran Hospital of Indiana
​Major Health Partners
​Marion General Hospital
​Memorial Hospital and Health Care Center
​Memorial Hospital of South Bend
​Northwest Health La Porte​
​​Northwest Health Porter
​Parkview DeKalb Hospital
​Parkview Hospital Randallia
​Parkview Huntington Hospital
​Parkview LaGrange Hospital
​Parkview Noble Hospital
​Parkview Regional Medical Center
​Parkview Whitley Hospital
​Perry County Memorial Hospital
​Riverview Health
​Schneck Medical Center
​Sullivan County Community Hospital
​​Sidney & Lois Eskenazi Hospital
Terre Haute Regional Hospital 
​The Women's Hospital (Deaconess)
​Union Hospital​
​Witham Health Services



Indiana Department of Health Perinatal Centers Notification

In May 2014, the Indiana Perinatal Quality Improvement Collaborative (IPQIC) endorsed the recommendation that Coordinated Perinatal Systems of Care be established that will promote high-quality service delivery systems and risk-appropriate health care before, during, and after pregnancy for all women of childbearing age. There is significant evidence that a statewide coordinated perinatal system of care will improve infant mortality and morbidity. The coordinated system also promotes and ensures that all hospitals, regardless of level, have an important role to play in assuring that all babies born in Indiana have the best start of life. The Indiana Department of Health recently completed the review of applications for delivery hospitals seeking Perinatal Centers of designation. As a reminder, all delivery hospitals (non-Centers) must affiliate with a Center within 12 months of notification, so 11/2/21. If a hospital does not affiliate in that time period, IDOH can start assigning affiliates as needed.

Perinatal Centers

Ascension St. Vincent Evansville

Ascension St. Vincent Women's

Community Hospital North

Deaconess The Women's Hospital

Dupont Hospital

Riley Children's Health at Indiana University Health Methodist Hospital

Lutheran Hospital of Indiana

Memorial Hospital of South Bend

Parkview Regional Medical Center

Saint Joseph Health System- Mishawaka Medical Center

See the complete IDOH announcement here​.


​2021 Perinatal Substance Use Conference Recording and Presentations
​​2021 PSU Conference Recording


Labor of Love

The Safety PIN program is just one of many initiatives to help reduce infant mortality in Indiana. Labor of Love: Helping Indiana Reduce Infant Death provides all pregnant women in Indiana the support they need to give birth to healthy babies.

The campaign educates Hoosiers to ensure that more babies survive their first year of life, focusing on the importance of:

  • Early and regular prenatal care Generic-PageImage-Med.png
  • Safe sleep practices
  • Avoiding tobacco, drugs, and alcohol before, during, and after pregnancy
  • Breastfeeding

For more information about how to get involved in the Safety PIN program or Labor of Love, email Brittany Waggoner​ or call 317-423-7795. ​​

 

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