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Seminar increases awareness on infant mortality
YOUNGSTOWN
Churches have to be willing to take on community health issues firsthand, especially when it comes to children and mortality, a church pastor said at a public seminar focused on decreasing Mahoning County’s high infant-mortality rates.
“Babies are a gift from God,” the Rev. Dr. William C. King Jr. said. “They are a gift while they are in the womb, and they are also a gift when they come out.”
His remarks came Saturday afternoon during the informational seminar at Price Memorial African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church on Youngtown’s East Side. The event was coordinated by the church and Dr. Rodney E. Hill, obstetrician/gynecologist at Associates in Women’s Health of the Mahoning Valley Inc. Hill said the seminar’s goal was to educate women on how they can help prevent infant mortality and promote infant wellness.
Hill’s nurse practitioner, Cynthia Daniels of Liberty, defined infant mortality as an infant who has died before his or her first birthday. There are several reasons why this may occur, including not receiving proper prenatal medical care.
“We can pick up on problems that can be prevented, but they [women] are coming in with problems,” explained Daniels. “Mothers are not getting the proper prenatal care needed during the beginning of their pregnancy.”
According to Daniels, a major cause of increased infant mortality is premature birth, any birth before 37 weeks. She recommends planning pregnancy so women can make sure their bodies are healthy before impregnation. Once pregnancy occurs, routine doctor visits allow medical personnel to monitor and treat problems in an effort to prevent premature births.
According to Cora Lewis, Infant Mortality Prevention Coalition coordinator for the Mahoning County District Board of Health, research conducted in 2015 revealed that of the Ohio’s 88 counties, Mahoning ranked second for highest infant mortality rate; Butler ranked No. 1.
More specifically, in regards to race, black babies have the highest infant mortality rate in Mahoning County. The exact cause is unknown, but Lewis mentioned indicators that can put a woman at risk for infant mortality.
“Risk factors include women with a 12th-grade education or less, not married, African-American and health care paid primarily by Medicaid,” she said.
Saturday’s event was not the first health-related informational event at Price Memorial. The church sponsors various wellness events through its Sacred Health Ministry that deals with the overall health of men, women and children.
“Healthy bodies and healthy minds means healthy individuals,” the Rev. Dr. King said. “God wants us to be both healthy spiritually and physically.”
During a recent health day at the church that featured blood-pressure tests, various women’s’ health screenings and a prostate-specific antigen test for men, which is often used to detect possible prostate cancer, three men tested showed high levels of the antigen and were advised to see their primary-care medical providers.