National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health
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December 13, 2002
1. Data on Child and Family Characteristics Following Congressional Redistricting Now Available
3. Research Synthesis Aims to Understand Impact of Welfare Reform on Child Well-Being
4. Some Prenatal Care Measures Indicate Less Disparity, While Others Indicate More, Study Finds
5. Study Identifies Risk Factors for SIDS Among American Indians
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1. DATA ON CHILD AND FAMILY CHARACTERISTICS FOLLOWING CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING NOW AVAILABLE
The KIDS COUNT Census 2000 interactive database now includes data on children and families from the 2000 decennial census, which reflects the newly drawn districts for the recently elected 108th Congress. The new congressional districts are the result of the reappointment and redistricting that occurred after the 2000 census results were released. This new look at the congressional districts is part of a continuing effort by the KIDS COUNT project of the Annie E. Casey Foundation to make key information related to children and families easily accessible. Users can obtain a profile of any congressional district or can rank selected districts based on a variety of characteristics. The data could be used to help focus the attention of newly elected and returning members of Congress, as well as of other policymakers, on some of the most critical needs of children and families. The data are available at http://www.aecf.org/kidscount/census/.
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2. NIDA ANNOUNCES 2003 RESOURCE CALENDAR FOR ASIAN AMERICANS, NATIVE HAWAIIANS, AND PACIFIC ISLANDERS
The 2003 Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders Calendar is a science-based resource calendar that provides information about the health risks, prevention, and treatment of drug abuse and addiction. In its ongoing effort to raise awareness among various populations in the United States about the health risks of drug abuse and addiction, the National Institute on Drug Abuse has partnered with leading Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (both individuals and organizations) nationwide. The calendar depicts the rich and diverse histories of the many Asian, Native Hawaiian, and other Pacific Islander cultures through artwork, photography, and textual translations. Created especially for Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and other Pacific Islanders, the calendar offers families and teachers useful information that can help them speak to children about the dangers of drug abuse and addiction in a way that incorporates their cultures. The calendar is available at http://www.drugabuse.gov/PDF/calendar2003.pdf.
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3. RESEARCH SYNTHESIS AIMS TO UNDERSTAND IMPACT OF WELFARE REFORM ON CHILD WELL-BEING
"The evidence suggests the impacts of [welfare] reforms differ with the stage of a child's development," state the authors of a research brief published by RAND's Labor and Population Program. This research, summarized with support from the RAND Child Health Policy Project (http://www.rand.org/child/about.html), resulted from a synthesis that aimed at understanding how welfare policies affect welfare-related outcomes, and specifically child well-being.
Selected studies came from two research strategies: random assignment (34 studies) and econometric methods using observational data (33 studies). The synthesis summarized the direction of the effect of each policy on each outcome and assigned an indicator of the depth of the knowledge base associated with that effect. Child well-being was divided into child abuse and neglect and into behavioral, school achievement, and health problems for three age groups of children (preschool age, grade school age, and adolescents) at the time of follow-up for the studies.
The authors found that
"The resulting impacts of welfare reform policies on child outcomes are likely to depend on the strength of the opposing forces and on the child's stage of development and other circumstances," state the authors. They assert that "long-run information on the effects of current policies on child well-being -- where the impacts may vary over time or with the stage of child development -- is crucial."
Labor and Population Program. 2002. A decade of welfare reform: What we've learned about child well-being. Research Brief. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation. Available at http://www.rand.org/publications/RB/RB5068.
Readers: Research results are described in detail in Consequences of Welfare Reform: A Research Synthesis by Jeffrey Grogger, Lynn A. Karoly, and Jacob A. Klerman. The report is available at http://www.rand.org/labor/TANF_synthesis/.
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4. SOME PRENATAL CARE MEASURES INDICATE LESS DISPARITY, WHILE OTHERS INDICATE MORE, STUDY FINDS
"During the 1980s and 1990s, the racial disparity between whites and African Americans in prenatal care use narrowed," state the authors of an article published in the December 2002 issue of the American Journal of Public Health. The authors of this article examined trends in early, adequate, and intensive prenatal care use by African-American and white women in the United States. The authors sought to establish (1) whether previously existing racial disparities in early and adequate use of prenatal care had been modified and (2) whether improvement in intensive use of prenatal care had been racially disproportionate. They also investigated the prenatal care trends of women considered at higher risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes: women with low education (<12 years of education completed), young women (<18 years of age), and unmarried women.
Data for the study were drawn from the National Center for Health Statistics natality files for 1981-1998. After selecting single live births to U.S. resident mothers who were either white or African American (by self-report), the authors (1) computed the gestational age in completed weeks, (2) determined the trimester in which care began, and (3) examined the adequacy of prenatal care utilization.
The authors found that
The authors conclude that "further efforts will be needed to better understand the factors influencing the use of prenatal care and related preventive health care services and to address the barriers that exist to their access and use." They assert that health care coverage for all pregnant women, ongoing education of providers, and comprehensive women's health care programs are among the possible initiatives that could be explored in an effort to reach our national goal.
Alexander GR, Kogan MD, Nabukera S. 2002. Racial differences in prenatal care use in the United States: Are disparities decreasing? American Journal of Public Health 92(12):1970-1975.
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5. STUDY IDENTIFIES RISK FACTORS FOR SIDS AMONG AMERICAN INDIANS
"This study of SIDS [(sudden infant death syndrome)] among American Indians identified 3 factors that are amenable to public health action and further research: (1) visits by PHNs [(public health nurses)], (2) periconceptional maternal alcohol drinking and first trimester binge drinking, and (3) infant layers of clothing," state the authors of an article published in the December 4, 2002, issue of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association. The authors point out that the SIDS rate for American Indian infants is much higher than that for all races combined (in 1999, the rate for American Indian infants was 1.5 per 1,000 live births, compared with 0.7 for all races combined). The study described in this article sought to determine prenatal and postnatal risk and protective factors for SIDS among Northern Plains American Indian infants.
The study period was December 1, 1992, through November 30, 1996. Study subjects consisted of 33 case infants for whom SIDS had been identified as the cause of death and 66 living control infants who had been matched to the case infants. American Indian nurse interviewers conducted parental interviews using an eighth-grade level, culturally competent questionnaire that solicited information about demographic and socioeconomic factors, maternal medical and obstetric history, neonatal history, and a wide range of potential risk factors.
The authors found that
The authors state that "our results provide new evidence that factors in the periconceptional period contribute to SIDS risk in addition to those identified in the prenantal and postnanal periods." They conclude that "public health outreach and programs to reduce alcohol consumption among women of childbearing age could have an impact on SIDS rates in this population."
Iyasu S, Randall LL, Welty TK, et al. 2002. Risk factors for sudden infant death syndrome among Northern Plains Indians. JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association 288(21):2717-2723.
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MCH Alert © 2002 by National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health and Georgetown University. MCH Alert is produced by MCH Library Services at the National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health under its cooperative agreement (U02 MC 0001-01) with the Maternal and Child Health Bureau, Health Resources and Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Maternal and Child Health Bureau reserves a royalty-free, nonexclusive, and irrevocable right to use the work for federal purposes and to authorize others to use the work for federal purposes.
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