Foundations of maternal and child health DBQ
Part A
1 page AMA format due 5/5 by 8pm EST US
Identify a historical event that interests you and that, you think, has something to do with maternal and childhood health today. Please elaborate on that connection, and on why that particular historical event interests you in the first place.
Part B
Minimum 1/2 page AMA format response to classmate’s response classmate Terlinde’s post
The historical event that interests me is the first milk station in 1893. Nathan Straus devoted his resources to helping those less fortunate during the depression. During this time, New York, had a high infant and children mortality rate and Status even lost two young children of his own. He concluded infants and children were getting sick from the bacteria in raw milk. So, he built the first milk station and sterilized milk and he sold it for pennies and gave it away for free to those who could not afford to pay.2 This is very close to home for me as this is comparable to what WIC does. Many of the participants are low-income and cannot afford nutritious foods for themselves, their children or formula for infants. WIC strongly encourages breastfeeding due to unlimited benefits to both mom and baby and it’s free. For those women who cannot breastfeed or choose not to, WIC provides formula. While providing education to parents and guardians, I discuss proper mixing, storing and washing bottles for both breast milk and formula. The same is today as many years ago, we want to provide proper sanitation and reduce the risk of bacteria to infants and children. Without WIC, I wonder how many babies would not have survived or be malnourished? The Peoria City/County Health Department is now a milk depot. We are connected to a local milk bank that will keep donated breast milk within the community for the infants born who need breast milk in the NICU. The donated milk can help the infant thrive and decrease their risk of infections, including necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC).
We are lucky in the United States that there are many programs available to promote maternal and child health. So why do we still have high infant mortality?
References:
1. The milk stations that saved the lives of city kids. The Ephemeral New York web site. https://ephemeralnewyork.wordpress.com/2011/11/03/the-milk-stations-that-saved-the-lives-of-city-kids/. Published November 3, 2011. Accessed May 3, 2018.