{"id":110,"date":"2015-08-23T15:54:02","date_gmt":"2015-08-23T20:54:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.kzoo.edu\/blackinfantmortality\/?p=110"},"modified":"2015-08-23T15:56:01","modified_gmt":"2015-08-23T20:56:01","slug":"reducing-infant-mortality-through-reproductive-health-education-for-newyoung-mothers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kzoo.edu\/blackinfantmortality\/reducing-infant-mortality-through-reproductive-health-education-for-newyoung-mothers\/","title":{"rendered":"Reducing Infant Mortality through Reproductive Health Education for New\/Young Mothers"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Olivia Nalugya<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Birth outcomes for young and new mothers are more likely to be poor compared to older mothers. Negative birth outcomes for young mothers have to do with social and economic factors such as stress and domestic abuse. However, based on findings from focus groups on\u00a0 Kalamazoo Black infant mortality, it was evident that young mothers lack information on how to take care of themselves before, during and after pregnancy which also contributes to poor birth outcomes. This article explores the need for education services for young and first time mothers and also questions the accessibility of such resources in Kalamazoo to young mothers. Recommendations for better or more successful resources for young mothers include models such as the Health Babies Project in the District of Columbia.<\/em><\/p>\n

The Facts\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cBut I had a stillborn in 1999. August 24, 1999. Quadralia Lashay Thompson may she rest in peace. But I was seventeen years old at that time\u2026\u201d-<\/em>Female at YWCA Kalamazoo MI<\/p>\n

When a child is born, a lot of factors have to be put into consideration to ensure successful development of that child. However, preparation before and during pregnancy is also as important to successful birth outcomes .It is even more complicated for new and young mothers because most of them have no experience at all with the process of child bearing. They need someone to teach them what vitamins to take, what signs to look out for, when to go to the doctor, what to eat and many more. According to the world Health organization, \u201cyoung adolescents face a higher risk of complications and death as a result of pregnancy than older women\u201d. In New York, \u201c8.3%, or 1 in 12 babies born to women of all ages in 2006 were LBW. For teen mothers, the rates are higher \u2013 ranging from 9% for White teens to 13.6% for Black, non-Hispanic teens\u201d(SCAA, 2008). The need for reproductive and maternal health education for first time and young mothers was a major recurring theme from interviews conducted with community members and healthcare workers, regarding black infant mortality in Kalamazoo.<\/p>\n

The Social Context<\/strong><\/p>\n

A study by Pogarsky et. al revealed that \u201c Children born to mothers who begin childbearing\u00a0at a young age experience a variety of negative outcomes\u201d (Porgarsky, Thornberry and Lizotte, 2006). They mainly related these negative outcomes to social issues such as stress, poverty and lack of parental skills, which are common for young mothers. Similarly, a participant in focus groups about black infant mortality narrated: \u201cAnd by me not being developed, it was like she(the baby)\u2026it got deeper so as far as you can go, like if you\u2019re being hung, you can\u2019t hang yourself unless you go so far. And so she hung herself and that was from me being seventeen years old, stressed out, and also going through domestic, domestic abuse.\u201d It is evident that her pregnancy was complicated by the biological aspects of her being a young mother. In other words, her body was not \u2018developed\u2019 enough to handle the demands of pregnancy. However, this was worsened by social factors which contributed immensely to her unfortunate birth outcome. As Porgarsky indicated, young mothers are more prone to such social risk factors. As such, reproductive health education for young and new mothers should be matched with intervention strategies that account for the social risk factors that affect birth outcomes of young mothers.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Prenatal care Awareness-Preparing for child birth<\/strong><\/p>\n

Prenatal care is the first form of medical care an unborn child receives. It constitutes, monitoring the condition of the baby before it is born so that any complications with the pregnancy can be detected. \u201cMothers who do not receive prenatal care are three times more likely to give birth to a low-weight baby, and their baby is five times more likely to die\u201d (Child Trends Data Bank). Findings from focus groups suggested that mothers, especially new or young mother are less likely to go for regular checkups when they are pregnant. A medical social worker reported that \u201cWell they (mothers) wait about 20 weeks or sometimes, I see, they wait till they get 6 months pregnant and go to their first doctor appointment.\u201d Additionally, the SCAA study in New York reported: \u201cChildren of teen mothers visit medical providers less than children born to older mothers (3.8 times vs. 4.3 times).\u201d Nevertheless, it is not enough, to acknowledge that young mothers are less likely to go for medical checkups before or after pregnancy. Deeper questions have to be asked: Why is a young mother unable to go for prenatal care? Does she know that she has to? Does she know where and when to go? A response from a focus group participant regarding her experience after pregnancy to some extent reflects the confusion that young and new mothers face due to lack of awareness about maternal and reproductive health in general: \u201cAnd you think that \u2018 Well grandma said, Do it like this, and my mama said, \u2018Do it like this.\u2019 And you are getting your whole friends telling you \u2018Do it like this.\u2019 But nobody says \u2018Get the baby to the hospital\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

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This however does not mean that there are no resources in Kalamazoo for that kind of education. In fact, a health care worker noted that: \u201c\u2026..we have free childbirth classes, free parenting, free daddying boot camp. There are a lot of options that Bronson itself provides, and then in the community there\u2019s even way more\u2026\u201d It is evident, that there are missing connections between reproductive health and parenting education resources and their consumption. In other words: are the resources accessible to individuals who need them? How can healthcare workers reach out more to young mothers so that they can receive the necessary preparation during and after pregnancy?<\/p>\n

Conclusion-The bigger picture<\/strong><\/p>\n

It is quite obvious why a young or new mother might have poor birth outcomes compared to older women. The biological constraints associated with early childbearing are undeniable but the lack of parenting experience and firsthand knowledge on what to do during pregnancy is a major contributing factor. However, we should also not be oblivious of the social factors that contribute to poor birth outcomes of young mothers such as domestic abuse, lack of access to resources and financial restrictions. These social contributors to infant mortality are not only unique to young mothers per se but young mothers are more prone to such risk factors. Additionally, there needs to be a critical evaluation about availability and accessibility or awareness of reproductive health education services in Kalamazoo to young and new mothers in particular.<\/p>\n

Recommendations<\/strong><\/p>\n

These are few model programs that could applied to Kalamazoo to offer better reproductive health education services to young mothers:<\/p>\n