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John Stewart, MS, MPH, Institute for Families in Society, University of South Carolina, Carolina Plaza, Columbia, SC 29208, 803-777-5516, jstewart@gwm.sc.edu and Ana Lopez-DeFede, PhD, MEd, Institute fo Families in Socity, University of South Carolina, 937 Assembly Street - Carolina Plaza, Columbia, SC 29208.
Perinatal health challenges for African American women are especially acute in the nonmetropolitan South. Promoting maternal and infant health in nonmetropolitan African American communities requires access to appropriate perinatal care. This study evaluated geographic access to hospital-based perinatal care for at-risk African American women in nonmetropolitan South Carolina. Data from the 2000 Census were used to determine the number of African American women at risk for poor perinatal outcomes (women ages 15 to 17 and 35 to 44) in 10,851 census blocks comprising the nonmetropolitan portion of an eight-county South Carolina perinatal region. Using a geographic information system (GIS), regional hospitals providing basic, specialty, and/or subspecialty perinatal care were geocoded at the street address level. A GIS network tool then was used to determine road distance from each populated block centroid (representing one or more at-risk women) to the nearest hospital(s) providing basic perinatal care, specialty care, and subspecialty care. Geographic access to hospital-based perinatal services varies markedly by level of care. On average, African American women in the study area (n=9,569) live 9.2 miles from basic perinatal services, 26.9 miles from specialty care, and 37.4 miles from subspecialty care. Distance to care may limit access to hospital-based perinatal services, particularly for nonmetropolitan women needing specialty and subspecialty care. In addition to distance calculation, GIS technology can be used to locate geographically remote at-risk populations, identify community-based perinatal care specialists serving remote areas, and plan maternal and neonatal transportation to improve perinatal outcomes for at-risk African Americans in nonmetropolitan regions.
Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, the participant (learner) will be able to
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.