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10/17/2006

Institute For Health Protection Presents: Optimal Management Of Pregnancy In Minority Women

CE-Accredited Program with Alan M. Peaceman, M.D., Professor of Maternal and Fetal Medicine, on October 26 in Chicago

CHICAGO (OCTOBER 17, 2006) – The Institute for Health Protection, a newly formed organization dedicated to improving health and preventing and managing chronic disease in diverse communities, is pleased to present the program, Optimal Management of Pregnancy in Minority Women, on Thursday, October 26, 2006 at 6:30 pm at the Conrad Hilton On the Magnificent Mile. This Continuing Education program for healthcare professionals will be a dinner presentation, led by Dr. Alan M. Peaceman, Professor and Chief of the Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. It is supported by an unrestricted educational grant from Talecris Biotherapeutics.

“Despite improved access to healthcare, advances in technology and an increase in public awareness, the rate of infant mortality is more than twofold higher in African-American women than in white women; and the rate among Puerto Rican woman is considerably higher than in other races/ethnicities,” Dr. Peaceman stated. “Through this presentation, we hope to continue to educate healthcare providers on the care of all pregnant women - particularly the unique issues and challenges faced when managing the care of pregnant minority women.”

The goal of this educational program is to provide strategies for managing pregnancy in minority women, targeting specific racial and ethnic socio-cultural issues such as Rh disease, sexually transmitted diseases, bacterial vaginosis, low birth weight and gestational diabetes. Upon completion of this program, the participant should be better able to identify risk factors in pregnant minority women, list screening tests that should be conducted during prenatal care of the pregnant minority woman, describe components of culturally appropriate nutritional guidelines during pregnancy in minority women, and describe psychosocial issues that are more common in the pregnant minority woman and appropriate interventions.

“Factors including the rising number of minorities in the United States, high birth rates in minority women, lower proportion of minority women who receive early prenatal care, and higher infant mortality in minorities underscore the need for increased awareness among healthcare provides and improved care in minority women, beginning before conception,” said Dr. Clyde Evans, Executive Director of The Institute for Health Protection. “The Institute’s work on this program advances our mission of addressing the needs of underserved patient communities.”

The Institute for Health Protection is a newly formed organization dedicated to improving health and preventing and managing chronic disease in diverse communities. The Institute designs and executes educational programs for communities and health professionals that help put evidence-based clinical therapies for prevention, diagnosis, and treatment into everyday practice. In addition, the Institute has developed special expertise in working with ethnically and racially diverse populations. As part of its overall collaborative model, the Institute brings together resources from multiple sectors--academic, clinical, community, corporate, and nonprofit--and focuses them to improve the health of ordinary people right in their own communities.

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