Social Work Program Sees Record Low in Infant Deaths
"B’more for Healthy Babies" (BHB) reminds us that public health interventions work. BHB is the outreach program coordinated by the University of Maryland School of Social Work as part of the Promise Heights initiative. When BHB launched in 2009 in Upton/Druid Heights, with a population that is among the city’s least wealthy and almost entirely Black, there was a higher rate of infant mortality than the city overall. After 10 years of programming, the rate has decreased dramatically by 75 percent, which is a significant reduction of infant mortality in that community to 3.8/1,000 live births. In a June press release, Mayor Brandon M. Scott said, “Thanks to the incredible work of B’more for Healthy Babies and our community partners, Baltimore babies have a better chance of growing up and reaching their full potential."
Depicted in the photograph: University of Maryland, Baltimore President Bruce E. Jarrell praises B’more for Healthy Babies and its community partners.