How hospitals are boosting maternal health

Monitoring pregnancy related hypertension using home-monitoring technology

Philadelphia-based Penn Medicine improved the health outcomes of postpartum women with hypertension through its Heart Safe Motherhood program by enabling women whose pregnancies were complicated by high blood pressure to take their own blood pressure readings using a cuff provided by Penn as well as a mobile app. As a result, no women enrolled in the program were readmitted to the hospital within seven days of giving birth, compared to a 5 percent readmission rate among women monitored through in-person visits, and 60 percent of participating women reported their blood pressure readings while enrolled. 

Learn more about the program and its impact here. 

Improving health outcomes of high-risk pregnant women

Samaritan Health Services in Corvallis, Ore., supports vulnerable pregnant women through its Samaritan Maternity Connection program by increasing access to care and by screening them for medical, obstetrical and psychosocial concerns in its five hospitals, as well as within three county health departments. In 2017, Samaritan provided more than 3,900 women with prenatal risk assessments, screenings, assistance with enrollment in Medicaid programs, referrals to social services and with treatment for alcohol, drug and tobacco use. 

Learn more about the program and its impact here. 

Partnering with local stakeholders to improve maternal care

The Northern New England Perinatal Quality Improvement Network (NNEPQIN), composed of organizations throughout New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine involved in perinatal care, such as hospitals, state health departments, professional midwifery organizations and the March of Dimes, has engaged more than of 43 organizations and worked with Exeter Hospital to reduce its early-elective delivery rate from 30 percent to zero.   

Learn more about the program and its impact here.