[StBernard] March of Dimes Mobile Health Centers Providing Care to Moms in Gulf Coast Areas Still Lacking Public Health Services

[Westley Annis]

March of Dimes Mobile Health Centers Providing Care to Moms in Gulf Coast
Areas Still Lacking Public Health Services


Last update: 4:45 p.m. EDT Aug. 7, 2008
NEW ORLEANS, Aug 07, 2008 /PRNewswire-USNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Three years
after the hurricanes of 2005, four March of Dimes Mom & Baby Mobile Health
Centers(R) are bringing much-needed maternal and infant health care to the
Greater New Orleans and Gulf Coast area, especially aiding new
Spanish-speaking residents who came to help rebuild the region that still is
plagued by limited access to public health services. 
Although almost all of the hospitals in Jefferson Parish have reopened,
fewer than two-thirds are operating in Orleans Parish, and none have
reopened in St. Bernard Parish. 
Since their launch in 2007, the March of Dimes Mom & Baby Mobile Health
Centers have provided more than 3,000 patient visits to the areas hardest
hit by the hurricanes: New Orleans; its suburbs St. Bernard Parish and the
Lower 9th Ward; the Lake Charles area; and Biloxi, Mississippi. The program
is on target to provide more than 15,000 visits in three years. 
"These four March of Dimes mobile health centers bring preconception,
prenatal and well-baby medical care to pregnant women, new mothers and
babies who desperately need it," said Dr. Jennifer L. Howse, president of
the March of Dimes. "Because our centers are mobile, we can bring quality
health care where it's needed most, like St. Bernard Parish." 
The March of Dimes Mom & Baby Mobile Health Centers continue to bring
doctors, nurses, medical supplies, the latest technology and information
directly to mothers and their babies, an important component of rebuilding
communities. Providing access to high-quality medical care is vital to
improving birth outcomes in the region. 
For example, in 2004, before the hurricanes, Louisiana's preterm birth rate
was 15.6 percent, nearly 25 percent above the national average. In 2005, the
state's preterm birth rate increased to 16.5 percent. Mississippi's preterm
birth rate increased to 18.8 percent in 2005, from 17.9 percent in 2004. 
As workers moved to the Gulf Coast to rebuild, the Spanish-speaking
population significantly expanded, and access to health care is limited for
them. 
"Many of our patients are Spanish-speaking, and because we are bi-lingual we
can offer these women access to quality health care," says Rosa
Bustamante-Forest, RN, MPH, MN, program director for the Mom & Baby Mobile
Health Center in New Orleans. "We're seeing repeat patients from last year
who are pregnant again, which speaks volumes to the quality of care we
offer." 
The Mom & Baby Mobile Health Centers were funded through the March of Dimes
Hurricane Assistance Fund that included a $3 million gift from the people of
Qatar. The mobile health centers are staffed by the Daughters of Charity
Services of New Orleans, Southwest Louisiana Area Health Education Center
and Coastal Family Health Center. 
Inside, the Mom & Baby Mobile Health Centers look like a regular healthcare
provider's office, with private exam areas, waiting areas and nurses'
station. They are equipped with fetal monitors, ultrasound and other
equipment, and a backup generator. The handicap accessible centers have
bilingual staff, including an obstetrician, nurse practitioner or midwife, a
nurse, lab technician and an outreach worker. The vehicles have a fixed
schedule at consistent locations each week so services will be dependable
and expected. 
The March of Dimes is the leading nonprofit organization for pregnancy and
baby health. With chapters nationwide, the March of Dimes works to improve
the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth and infant
mortality. For the latest resources and information, visit marchofdimes.com
or nacersano.org. 
SOURCE March of Dimes