2019 EAM Hospital Maternity Care Awards

Eleven Michigan hospitals awarded for excellence and improvement in maternity care

The EAM awarded hospitals throughout Michigan that have demonstrated excellence and improvement in maternity care and delivery outcomes. 2019 marks the second year for the awards.

The awards are part of EAM’s Maternity Care Project. Created in 2018, the project goals are to reduce the rate of unnecessary C-sections in the state, decrease infant mortality and reduce elective early deliveries.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Michigan had the 13^th highest infant mortality rate in the country in 2017. With higher mortality rates, come higher costs especially for large employers. How can these employers contribute to the reduction of infant mortality in the state? “To start, employers can look at their own data and research which hospitals service their population and compare procedures and the associated costs,” said Bret Jackson, president of EAM. “Other ways are by promoting prenatal care and educating employees and their dependents on the dangers associated with unnecessary c-sections and early elective delivery.”

For the award, hospitals were evaluated in four areas: cesarean rates (≤ 29.3% of low-risk deliveries), episiotomy rates (≤ 5% of deliveries), elective early delivery rates (≤ 5% of deliveries), and maternity care processes (90% or greater). The data is from The Leapfrog Group, a Washington, D.C. based organization aiming to improve health care quality and safety for consumers and purchasers.

To be awarded the Excellence Award, hospitals need to fully meet the standard in all four areas in the same calendar year. Recipients of the 2019 Maternity Care Excellence Award are:

• Bronson Hospital, Battle Creek
• Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit
• Mercy Health Saint Mary’s, Grand Rapids
• Metro Health, Wyoming
• Munson Medical Center, Traverse City
• Spectrum Health Gerber Memorial, Fremont
• Spectrum Health Lakeland, St. Joseph
• Spectrum Health Pennock Hospital, Hastings
• Spectrum Health United Hospital, Greenville

For the Improvement Award, hospitals must have demonstrated rate decreases in cesarean rates, episiotomy and elective early delivery over a two-year period, and must now fully meet the standard for cesarean delivery rates. Recipients of the 2019 Maternity Care Improvement Award are:

• Munson Grayling Hospital, Grayling
• Spectrum Health Lakeland, Niles

Two hospitals decreased their unnecessary cesarean rates by ten percent or more:

• Mercy Health Saint Mary’s in Grand Rapids with a 12.9 percent reduction
• Spectrum Lakeland in Niles with a 15.6 percent reduction.

“On behalf of the EAM and our members, I applaud the efforts of this year’s recipients and ask the birth centers in the state who do not report outcomes to The Leapfrog Group to step-up to the plate and be more transparent by participating in the annual survey,” said Jackson.

The Maternity Care Project provides details for each birth center in Michigan, providing a mom-to-be invaluable information in making her choice for hospital maternity care. To compare birth centers, go to www.eamonline.org/maternity.