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Mortality for Women within One Year after Delivery in the National Hospital Care Survey, 2016 (306772)
*Geoff Jackson, National Center for Health StatisticsDonielle White, National Center for Health Statistics
Sonja Williams, National Center for Health Statistics
Keywords: Mortality, Hospital Care
Approximately 700 women die each year from pregnancy-related complications in the United States. The rate of pregnancy-related deaths has increased from 7.2 deaths per 100,000 in 1987 to 17.2 in 2015. This study examines death as occurring while pregnant, at the time of delivery, or within a year after delivery. The National Hospital Care Survey (NHCS) contains information on patients, conditions, and care received during visits to hospital inpatient and emergency departments, from a sample of hospitals across the Nation. NHCS data are not nationally representative but exploratory analysis on hospital care, including mortality, can demonstrate its uniqueness. NHCS patient records are linked across hospital settings, over time, and with outside data sources, such as the National Death Index. This allows for tracking care while pregnant, after delivery, and mortality after the hospital visit. There are 109 women identified in the 2016 NHCS who died at the hospital during delivery or within a year after delivery. Risk factors will be analyzed from NHCS, including high-risk pregnancy, infections, and anemia. Cause of death information will be analyzed from the NDI.