9/2/14 3:39 PMGPA E-News: December Issue

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E -NEWS ! December 2013

Board of Directors

Diane Youmans, RNC,MSN

President

Jodi Hudgins, RN, MSN,CLC

President-Elect

Bonnie Simmons, PhD, RNPast President

Margaret (Peggy) B. Hotz

Secretary

George Bugg, Jr., MD Treasurer

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Community Baby ShowerThe Women's Pavilion at Tift Regional Medical Center had over 100participants in the Community Baby Shower on April 27, 2013. TheCommunity Baby Shower was funded by a community award from theGeorgia Chapter March of Dimes, an educational award from GeorgiaPerinatal Association, and Tift Regional Medical Center. The event had refreshments, vendors to promote the "Going the Full FortyWeeks" campaign, car seat safety checks, and free door prizes. Differentmembers from the community spoke on a variety of maternal and newborntopics including: Going the Full Forty, Baby-Friendly Initiatives,Breastfeeding, Car Seat Safety, and Safe Sleep. This event would not havebeen possible without the financial support of Tift Regional Medical Center,March of Dimes, and Georgia Perinatal Association.

Skin to Skin, Rooming In, andSupplementation: How Nursing PracticesCan Help or Hinder Breastfeeding Success The CDC has just published their 2013 Breastfeeding Report Card for theUnited States. Nationally 77% of all mothers are choosing to breastfeedtheir infant. We lag behind in Georgia where only 68% of Georgia mothersare choosing to breastfeed. Providing skin to skin contact during the first hour of life, avoidingsupplementation and keeping mom and baby together during the hospitalstay are important interventions that are proven to facilitate newborntransition, and improve latch and lactation. Birthing facilities that practice

9/2/14 3:39 PMGPA E-News: December Issue

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Georgia Commissioner of Public Health, Brenda Fitzgerald, MD(center), with Mitch Rodriguez, MD, and Seema Csuka, MD, PhD

these interventions position their breastfeeding mothers for success. So why aren't all Georgia birthing facilities embracing this? Perhaps theanswer lies within each one of us and our own prejudices, experiences, anddiscomfort. To read more about the report, click here.

2013 March of Dimes Georgia Chapter, FirstEver Statewide Prematurity AwarenessSummit In coordination with the Association of Women's Health of Neonatal Nurses(AWHONN), Georgia Department of Public Health, Georgia PerinatalAssociation (GPA), and the Medical Center of Central Georgia (MCCG), theGeorgia Chapter of the March of Dimes held its First Ever StatewidePrematurity Awareness Summit on November 5th in Macon at MCCG'sPeyton Anderson Health Education Center. The Summit attracted over 120 executive leaders from within Georgia'sMaternal Child Health sector representing over 50 communities from aroundthe State. Commissioner Brenda Fitzgerald, MD unveiled the March ofDimes 2013 Prematurity Report Card presenting our improved letter gradefrom a "D" to a "C" with a preterm birth rate of 12.7%.

In addition toan in-depthoverview ofGeorgia'sPerinatalLandscape, anintroduction tothe newlydevelopedGeorgiaPerinatalQualityCollaborative(GaPQC),updates on theStatewide 39+Weeks

Initiative and a comprehensive presentation on CenteringGeorgia, therewere a number of breakout sessions conducted during the Summit.Sessions included: a 39+ Weeks Grand Rounds led by Dr. Karen Harris, aMeet & Greet with the MoD 2014 Grantees, an MCH Partners LegislativeRoundtable, and an MCH Resources for Birthing Hospitals Panel. With the overwhelming success of this Summit, the Georgia Chapter hasalready begun planning for the 2014 Statewide Prematurity AwarenessSummit!

CONTACT USGPA Executive Office .

9/2/14 3:39 PMGPA E-News: December Issue

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