Category A (New States): Connecticut Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System

Connecticut State Dept Of Public Health, Hartford CT

Investigators

Abstract

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Project Abstract The Connecticut (CT) Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) survey is designed to provide the Department of Public Health (DPH) with important data about maternal health, experiences, and behaviors during the perinatal period, and advance knowledge about risk and protective factors among CT mothers, and to investigate the associations between these factors and birth outcomes and maternal and infant health. Monthly random samples of birth records will be drawn for Connecticut resident women who delivered an infant in state within the preceding 2-4 months. Reducing racial and ethnic health disparities is central to all DPH programs and initiatives. The sample will be stratified by maternal race/ethnicity in order to produce separate estimates for population subgroups, and to allow for meaningful comparisons to quantify and investigate disparities in perinatal indicators. This process will span 12-months, with a total sample size of 2,385 women. Mothers will receive a series of mailings, consistent with a methodology outlined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Telephone follow-up will be conducted for those mothers who did not respond during the mail phase of the survey. CT PRAMS data will be integrated into efforts to address state Maternal and Child Health priorities, as well as statewide plans and initiatives to reduce low birth weight, infant mortality, and health disparities. Statewide partnerships will be utilized to inform the project and facilitate wide dissemination of CT PRAMS findings.