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Why Our Work Matters Chester County residents, for the most part, have access to high-quality health care resources and enjoy some of the best maternal and child health outcomes in Pennsylvania. However, not all Chester County residents share equally in these excellent health outcomes. In Chester County, as throughout the United States, African-American and Latino babies are much more likely than white babies to be born too early and too small. These racial and ethnic disparities impact families, communities, and the health-care and education systems - and are largely preventable. The challenge for MCHC is not only to provide services to at-risk families during a time of shrinking resources, but to mobilize Chester County communities to respond to the needs listed below. Improved access to high-quality health care will benefit all Chester County residents and eliminate racial and ethnic disparities.  The Needs We Address Infant Mortality: The U.S. ranks 32nd among industrialized nations in infant mortality. In Chester County, the rate of infant mortality for African-Americans is more than double that of white infants. Low Birthweight: Babies weighing fewer than 5.5 pounds at birth are low birthweight. Low birthweight is the leading cause of infant death and is largely preventable. Unlike infant mortality, low birthweight has not declined significantly in the last decade. In Chester County, African-American infants are more than twice as likely as white infants (11.3% vs. 5.7%) to be low birthweight, and 5.3% of Hispanic infants are born low birthweight. Lack of Prenatal Care: Delayed or lack of prenatal care increases the risk of low birthweight and some maternal health problems. In Chester County, African-American and Hispanic women are less likely than white women to get early prenatal care - 60% and 63% vs. 73%. Smoking: Women who smoke during pregnancy are more likely to miscarry or have low birthweight babies. Babies are more likely to be admitted to intensive care and have increased risk of serious respiratory illnesses. In Chester County, an estimated 30.6% of women report that they smoke everyday (CDC, 2002). Alcohol Abuse: Alcohol abuse during pregnancy can have lifelong effects on infants, including mental retardation and learning disabilities. An estimated 20% of women continue to drink while pregnant. Mental Health: One out of eight new mothers will have postpartum depression. In women with a history of postpartum depression, the risk of recurrence is one in four. (New England Journal of Medicine, 7/24/02). Oral Health: Periodontal disease in pregnant women has been linked to increased risk for premature, low birthweight babies. Health Insurance: An estimated 45,000 people lack health insurance in Chester County. In 2005, 75% of pregnant Healthy Start participants had no health insurance at enrollment. Linguistic Access to Care: With the Hispanic population in Chester County increasing by 88% from 1990-2000, ensuring effective communication in health-care settings is more important than ever. Language barriers negatively affect access to and quality of health care, resulting in serious health consequences. Transportation: Low-income families in Chester County lack transportation to health-care services. Several recent county studies confirmed this and noted that African-American and Hispanic families are especially impacted. |
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