(Pierre, SD) — Health leaders are rolling out a five-year plan to increase healthy baby deliveries. The plan is a three-pronged strategy to improve postpartum care, expand safe sleep education, and strengthen care systems so families can find services easier. A 10-year study from 2015 to 2024 shows pregnancy-related deaths have declined slightly but infant mortality rates are still too high. The report notes that pregnancy-related deaths can happen as late as one year after childbirth, which is why the plan focuses on postpartum recovery. The plan was put together by the Maternal and Infant Health Task Force as part of the Rural Health Transformation Project.
