Perinatal Mortality Review

Programs

What is the Perinatal Mortality Review committee?

Every month, a committee of multidisciplinary volunteers meet to review infant and maternal deaths. The goal is prevention of such deaths by improving systems of care. This review process has been in place in Utah since 1995.

The Perinatal Mortality Review committee’s vision is to eliminate preventable infant and maternal deaths in Utah.

What is an infant death?

An infant death is the death of an infant before their first birthday.

What is a maternal death?

A maternal death is the death of a woman during pregnancy or within one year of the end of pregnancy.

How does the review process work?

Information is gathered from death certificates, birth certificates, medical records, autopsy reports, and other pertinent resources. Records are abstracted by a trained abstractor, who prepares de-identified case narratives for review by a committee of experts from diverse disciplines.

The committee reviews and makes decisions about each case based on the case narrative and abstracted data. The committee examines the cause of death and contributing factors, and determines:

  1. Was the death pregnancy-related?
  2. If pregnancy-related, what was the underlying cause of death?
  3. Was the death preventable?
  4. If there were chances to alter the outcome, what were they?
  5. What were the contributing factors to the death?
  6. What specific and feasible recommendations for actions should be taken to prevent future deaths?

The committee’s findings and recommendations are prioritized and disseminated to a broad array of individuals, organizations, and the public.

How is Utah doing?

Maternal mortality in Utah 2017-2020

Complete Health Indicator Report of Maternal Mortality

Complete Health Indicator Report of Infant Mortality