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| Eleven L&D units have closed in New Hampshire since 2002. (NHPR map, from N.H. Peri. Collab. data) |
The network added additional training and drills for its doctors and staff, so they are prepared for stressful deliveries. Cuno-Booth writes, "More than a quarter of patients now live a half hour or more from the nearest birthing hospital – making it harder to access routine prenatal care and raising the risk of an unplanned birth at home or on the way to the hospital."
Ali Willard, a high-risk obstetrics nurse and care coordinator with Dartmouth Health, told Cuno-Booth, “If you were having a heart attack, would you want to have to drive three hours to receive medical care? No. And that's not a standard anywhere in our country to have to drive that far for that type of emergency. But obstetric emergencies are just as critical to somebody's life. But some women have to drive that far.”
The network's collaboration is also working to "give EMTs and ER doctors in the region more training on how to respond to obstetric emergencies, in case something happens far from the nearest birthing hospital," Cuno-Booth adds.
Natalie Valliere, who runs a labor and delivery unit in Coos County, is working with a team to address the many challenges North Country maternity services face. "[She] says there’s no single answer," Cuno-Booth reports. "But in a region where people and resources are spread out over a vast rural area. . . collaboration will be key."
As people "work to strengthen maternity care in the North Country, [many] say that mission is about more than supporting parents and newborns," Cuno-Booth writes. "It’s about whether communities here can survive and thrive." If a woman can't safely have children in a region, will a family want to move there?
Ali Willard, a high-risk obstetrics nurse and care coordinator with Dartmouth Health, told Cuno-Booth, “If you were having a heart attack, would you want to have to drive three hours to receive medical care? No. And that's not a standard anywhere in our country to have to drive that far for that type of emergency. But obstetric emergencies are just as critical to somebody's life. But some women have to drive that far.”
The network's collaboration is also working to "give EMTs and ER doctors in the region more training on how to respond to obstetric emergencies, in case something happens far from the nearest birthing hospital," Cuno-Booth adds.
Natalie Valliere, who runs a labor and delivery unit in Coos County, is working with a team to address the many challenges North Country maternity services face. "[She] says there’s no single answer," Cuno-Booth reports. "But in a region where people and resources are spread out over a vast rural area. . . collaboration will be key."
As people "work to strengthen maternity care in the North Country, [many] say that mission is about more than supporting parents and newborns," Cuno-Booth writes. "It’s about whether communities here can survive and thrive." If a woman can't safely have children in a region, will a family want to move there?
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