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Background: Maternal and Infant morbidity and mortality is on the rise in the U.S. and Broward County with over 470,000 babies being born premature nationally. Maternal deaths in America have always been underreported, and current research in Florida revealing that more than 50 women die annually in Florida alone. High risk factors such as multiple births, fertility treatment, folic acid education, poor prenatal care, rise in diabetes, and especially the medical malpractice crisis all adversely effect pregnancy outcomes and contribute to maternal deaths in Florida and Broward County. Florida Vital Statistics, 2002, report the resident infant mortality rate for nonwhites (12.4%) is more that double the infant mortality rate for whites (5.9). The leading causes of resident infant deaths in 2002 were prenatal conditions, congenital anomalies, and sudden infant death syndrome.

Mission: The mission of the Maternal/Infant Health focus group will be to educate healthcare professionals in conjunction with collaborative systems through NSU faculty, students and administrators, CCB, and all Broward's Community providers to improve the quality of maternal and infant health.

Strategies:

1. Increase awareness of the multidimensional problems currently occurring in the quality of maternal and infant health in Broward County.
2. Develop collaborative approaches to enhance the awareness of scope of the crisis in the quality maternal infant health in Broward County.
3. Develop new models, which will better allow the development of improved access and quality of care for maternal and child health in Broward County.
4. Better Utilize all NSU faculty, students and facilities /programs to decrease the impact of neonatal and maternal mortality in Broward County.
5. Develop Research protocols to specifically address maternal and infant health disparities.

Goals:

1. Forms the Maternal and Infant Health focus group Feb 2004.
2. Identify the top 5 contributing factors adversely effecting maternal and infant health.
3. Identify current experts and programs, which are positively improving maternal and infant health.
4. List methodologies, which have been used to improve maternal and infant health.
5. Share information with NSU faculty, students, facilities /programs, administrators, CCB, and Broward's Community providers.