The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #37537

Gabriela Alcalde, MPH and Nanette Elster, JD, MPH. Medicine, Institute for Bioethics, Health Policy and Law, University of Louisville, 501 E. Broadway, Suite 310, Louisville, KY 40202

Maternal mortality and infant/child mortality rates are key health indicators that serve as measures of a nation’s health. The establishment and expansion of child fatality review (CFR) and maternal mortality review (MMR) is a national priority under the Healthy People 2010 initiative. Fatality review is a key tool for understanding the causes and circumstances surrounding a death. CFR and MMR processes are a vital link between public health surveillance activities and prevention research needed to better understand the causes of preventable maternal and childhood deaths. The overall purpose of fatality review committees is to identify effective intervention and prevention methods to decrease the number of preventable deaths. Fatality review can help to identify failures or oversights in care, gaps in service, trends and patterns, and system weaknesses; properly classify causes of death; have a judicial impact on specific cases of child death; and improve accurate counting and reporting of maternal deaths. Important lessons can be learned from CFR and MMR to help decrease future preventable deaths by shaping prevention strategies, interventions, and policies. Current approaches to MMR and CFR differ greatly from state to state, making systematic collection and analysis of nationwide data difficult if not impossible. This paper will discuss the current status of MMR and CFR in the U.S and will present, analyze, and evaluate various state approaches to MMR and CFR, while highlighting similarities and differences between MMR and CFR.

Learning Objectives:

• At the conclusion of the session, participants in this sessions will have a clearer understanding of the current status of fatality review in the U.S., of the importance and role of fatality review in decreasing preventable deaths, and of the similarities and differences between CFR and MMR.
• Participants will also be able to list the seven conceptual areas used to analyze both MMR and CFR.
• Participants will recognize the importance of legislative protections provided to fatality review teams and discuss key components of model legislation.
• Participants will be able to articulate the arguments in favor of multidisciplinary review teams and their impact in accurately counting and assessing childhood and maternal deaths.
• Finally, participants will be able to identify similarities and differences between CFR and MMR processes.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: Ms. Elster is currently working on a cooperative agreement with CDC and ATPM entitled "Analysis of Child Fatality Review Legislation."