Mahoning infant mortality rate falls, except for black babies

YOUNGSTOWN

Area health officials leading the fight to reduce the dismal infant-mortality rate in Youngstown and Mahoning County are encouraged the overall rate of babies dying before their first birthdays was slightly less in Ohio in 2014 compared with 2013.

They are concerned, however, that the black infant-mortality rate has not improved.

“It is twice the overall rate, and that has to be our focus moving forward,” said Dr. Elena Rossi, associate chairwoman of the pediatrics department at Akron Children’s Hospital Mahoning Valley and one of the leaders of the M-Y Baby’s 1st organization.

The M-Y Baby’s 1st, originally known as the Birth Outcome Equity team, has several initiatives to improve the infant-mortality rate, or IMR, in Youngstown and Mahoning County, including safe sleep, centering pregnancy, birth spacing and premature births.

“With state data, we can target at-risk patients in ZIP codes with low income and low education,” Dr. Rossi said.

Infant mortality is defined as the death of a live-born baby before its first birthday. The infant-mortality rate is the number of such deaths per 1,000 live-born births.

Read more about the issue in Thursday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.