Hoosier hospitals among best for maternity care
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U.S. News & World Report has unveiled its list of the 2022-2023 Best Hospitals for Maternity Care. The publication evaluated nearly 650 hospitals throughout the country with fewer than 300 receiving a “High Performing” designation, including four in Indiana.
The Indiana hospitals that received the “High Performing” designation include Indiana University Health West Hospital in Avon, IU Health Bloomington Hospital, IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital in Muncie, and IU Health Paoli Hospital.
This year’s list, which is not a ranking, is based on measures of quality among hospitals that provide labor and delivery services, including C-section rates in lower-risk pregnancies, newborn complication rates, exclusive breast milk feeding rates, and early elective delivery rates.
U.S. News also added four measures that were not previously factored into the list. They include episiotomy rates, vaginal birth after cesarean rates, whether each hospital met new federal criteria for “birthing-friendly” practices, and rewards for tracking reporting outcomes for patients of different races and ethnicities.
“Identifying racial disparities in maternity care is a vital step toward achieving health equity,” Min Hee Seo, senior health data scientist at U.S. News, said in written remarks. “The new measures provide expectant parents with many important data points, such as whether hospitals implemented patient safety practices, to assist them in making a decision about where to receive maternity care.”
You can connect to the full list and methodology by clicking here.