Rural Maternal Health Data Support and Analysis Program

Current Projects

• Higher-Level Maternity Care Access in Rural Communities
  This project will build on University of Minnesota's dataset on obstetric care access, which now includes an indicator of higher-level neonatal care at U.S. hospitals. We will assess the feasibility and reliability of creating an indicator for higher-level maternal care, based on a previously published algorithm identifying maternal levels of care.
  Topics: Health services, Healthcare access, Hospitals and clinics, Maternal health
  
• Monitoring Obstetric Unit Closures and Maintaining County-level Data on Hospital-based Obstetric Care 2010-2025
  This project will build on the University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center's 2010-2024 dataset on obstetric care access. We will create updated county-level public health data infrastructure with information on hospital-based obstetric care in rural and urban counties, and on the loss of hospital-based obstetric services through 2025.
  Topics: Health services, Healthcare access, Hospitals and clinics, Maternal health
  
• Relationship Between Rural Hospital Bypass and Obstetric Unit Closures
  This project will assess how often and what type of rural pregnant patients bypass local birth hospitals for obstetric care, and identify bypass patterns that precede obstetric unit closures.
  Topics: Healthcare financing, Hospitals and clinics, Maternal health