Perinatal Health Data Collection Procedures Across State Health Departments

Health data are essential for prioritization in program planning to assess needs and improve health outcomes for the general population. Health departments rely on primary and secondary data collection efforts to strategize and evaluate programs.

In an attempt to evaluate state-specific efforts to enrich nationally collected perinatal health data, a brief e-mailed survey, consisting of open-ended questions, was administered to the fifty states. Among survey responses received, two areas emerged as pertinent to perinatal health data management: data sources and data linkages. Therefore, a follow-up request was sent, focusing on the identification of data sources and data linkages utilized in perinatal health program planning among state health departments. Forty-three (83%) state health departments responded to the request. Results provide an overview of the variety of data sources, policies, and mechanisms for data collection, storage and management currently being utilized across the country to inform perinatal health planning. Respondents also provided examples of “best practices” regarding their data management systems and perinatal health programs.

This information we collected was intended to assist the District of Columbia Department of Health Advisory Committee on Perinatal, Infant and Interconceptional Health and Development in order to develop policy recommendations for the District of Columbia. The information shared in this study is beneficial for national comparisons and will also inform state and local health program planners in what data may be available to them regionally and nationally.