Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 7, Number 5, 1 May 1990 — Mothers Care campaign launched [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Mothers Care campaign launched

Gov. John Waihee has announced the formation of a public and private sector eoalihon called "Mothers Care For Tomorrow's Children" to design and implement a statewide prenatal care and education effort. Four major organizations have banded together in an effort to link women with needed prenatal services: The Hawai'i Medical Service Association (HMSA), Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children, the March of Dimes and the Hawai'i State Department of Health. The major elements of the program will include: • A funded communications campaign to build public awareness and motivate pregnant women to seek prenatal care and education; • mobilization of community resources to support the program and provide services; • a telephone hotline to provide information and handle referrals; • an incentive program to help attract pregnant women into the program; • development and promotion of an effective statewide prenatal care and education delivery system. The communications phase of the effort includes a television campaign urging pregnant women not to drink, smoke or take drugs and to see a doctor right away to get proper prenatal care. Other programs will be phased in over several months. According to nahonal studies, early and adequate care and education ean reduce problem pregnancies and infant mortality. The United States as a whole has fallen behind the rest of the world in solving these problems and, in fact, its infant mortality rate in 1988 was worse than nearly every western European country. State director of health John C. Lewin, M.D., said his department is enthusiastic about polling public and private efforts to meet the needs of pregnant women, who are an important segment of the population that is too often overlooked. "Prenatal care should be a basic right of every

woman in the state," Lewin said. According to HMSA president Marvin B. Hall, last year HMSA paid out over $7 m'llion in maternity benefits to its members due to complications of birth. "We feel this program holds great promise for providing significant cost savings for Hawaii's total health care bill while improving the health of tomorrow's children," he said. Richard Davi, president and CEO of Kapiolani Health Care System, commented that poor prenatal care leads to poor pregnancy outcomes and is a high risk factor for neonatal care. Costs for a 'normal' newborn are generally less than $1,000 in total. Costs for the treatment of a baby requiring specialized neonatal intensive care services

average $2,500 per day. "These financial realities mean support of a strong prenatal education program is a bargain," Davi said. Initial funding for the program is being provided by HMSA and Kapiolani Medical Center. Both organizations said they will provide money and manpower to support the effort for an indefinite period. The Hawai'i State Department of Health is providing leadership and coordination to help reduce existing barriers to care and is assisting in expanding health education across the state. The March of Dimes is contributing its prenatal education expertise and related programs as a member of the sponsoring group.