Mercy Health - Anderson Hospital

At Mercy Health, our gynecologists, urologists, and women's health specialists deliver personal, high-quality care for women of all ages and at every stage of life. Our women's health care covers the full scope of women’s pelvic and reproductive health. This includes gynecology, obstetrics, maternity services, reproductive health, and preventive medicine. Our board-certified specialists also provide routine gynecological care, infertility evaluations, and advanced gynecological surgery. 

At Mercy Health — Anderson Hospital, located on Cincinnati's East Side, we understand the value of exceeding your and your family’s needs in the healing process. That’s why we foster a patient and family-centered atmosphere, backed, of course, by award-winning care.

Maternal Care
- Family Birthing Centers 
- Midwife Services 
- Preconception Care 
- Prenatal Care 
- Lactation Services (Breastfeeding) 
- Childbirth and Parenting Education 
- Obstetrical Services     

Infant Care
- Level II Special Care Nursery 
- Pediatric Specialty Services 
- Neonatal Care 
- Safe Sleep 

Mama Certification

Infant Care

Hospitals are awarded points for their certification based on guidelines that assign each metric a point value, which is split into parts based on the sub-questions in each metric. Hospitals receive points by sharing some or all of the metrics data.

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METRICS	FINDINGS	PROGRESS
Health Equity on Race & Ethnicity Infant mortality rates are substantially higher for Black infants than for White infants in the United States. In 2021, Black babies were nearly 5 times more likely to die than White babies. Health disparities are preventable poor health outcomes experienced by populations disadvantaged by their social or economic status, geographic location, and environment. By monitoring health outcomes by race and ethnicity, hospital facilities can adapt processes and policies to provide more equitable quality care and improve the health outcomes of their patient populations.	The hospital facility has tracking, policies, and procedures in place to address racial and ethnic disparities in health outcomes related to infant care.  The are policies or procedures in place for root cause analysis that recognizes patient race/ethnicity. The procedure for root cause analysis and investigation is: all safety events are entered into our electronic reporting system. This reporting system includes demographic fields such as race and ethnicity. Demographic data is analyzed and considered for our root cause action plans to improve patient care.   Actions are being taken to address any disparities in health outcomes. Any disparities identified during the review process or admission are evaluated and referred appropriately based on the opportunity or results of social determinants of health (SDOH) screening.
Breastfeeding Breastfeeding boosts the immune system and brain development, reduces the risk of infection, and reduces the risk of infant mortality. Racial disparities in breastfeeding rates can have a significant impact on infant health outcomes. Studies have found that Black mothers are less likely to initiate breastfeeding than their White counterparts and are more likely to stop breastfeeding before their infant is six months old. The national rate of exclusive breastfeeding in 2019 is 62.6%. Ohio’s rate of exclusive breastfeeding in 2021 is 51.7%.	The percentage of babies breastfed or fed breast milk while the newborn is at the hospital facility is above the 2021 Ohio Rate of 51.7%.     The hospital facility has the ability to track its race and ethnicity specific to exclusive breast milk feeding. The facility would be able to report if needed.  The hospital facility has received four stars from Ohio First Steps for Healthy Babies breastfeeding program.  The hospital facility participates in the Ohio First Steps for Healthy Babies breastfeeding program and has received Four-Star status. The hospital facility promotes, protects, and supports breastfeeding in their organization through International Board Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLC)-certified lactation consultants available from 7 a.m. to midnight, Monday through Friday and for four hours each weekend day; initial training of all direct care staff in lactation support and annual education; outpatient lactation services available free of charge by appointment; twice monthly breastfeeding support groups; lactation warm line for mothers after discharge; and the newly implemented donor breastmilk program.
Unexpected Complications in Term Newborns The most important childbirth outcome for families is bringing home a healthy baby. While there have been measures developed to assess clinical practices and outcomes in preterm infants, there is a lack of metrics that assess the health outcomes of term infants who represent over 90% of all births. No existing national or Ohio baseline data exists yet for this metric as it is defined by the Joint Commission. The overall local rate for newborns with severe complications and moderate complications from eight hospital-based birthing facilities in Butler and Hamilton County in 2021 is 2.59%.	Newborn complications at this facility are higher than the 2021 Hamilton and Butler County average of 2.59% This hospital facility has the ability to track disparities by race and ethnicity in this category.
Safe Sleep Safe sleep is important because it helps to reduce the risk of sudden unexplained infant death (SUID). It is recommended that babies sleep on their back, in a crib or bassinet that meets current safety standards and is free of loose bedding, pillows, and stuffed animals. Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is a well-known category of SUID. Racial disparities in sleep-related infant deaths are significant and contribute to the overall disparity in infant mortality rates. Black infants are more than twice as likely to die from a SUID as White infants.	The hospital facility implements a safe sleep screening procedure.  All mothers are asked whether they have a crib with a firm mattress, bassinet or pack & play for their baby. Infants without a safe place to sleep are given a pack & play by the hospital facility.  This facility does not participate in Cribs for Kids Accreditation. Mercy Health Anderson meets all the requirements of gold level certification for the national Cribs for Kids initiative but has never sought formal certification.   Mercy Health Cincinnati is a subgrantee to the Cincinnati Health Department as part of Ohio Dept. of Health’s Cribs for Kids program. Participation requires a written agreement, safe sleep assessments, education, crib delivery during a home visit, and a follow-up phone call or home visit at 6 weeks postpartum.
Mama Certified Promotion The Mama Certified badge is a symbol of commitment and trust that should be present during a mom’s entire birthing journey, from prenatal care to postpartum support. For bringing about change, visibility and repetition is key. These visual reminders are not only important for moms but also for staff.	The hospital facility demonstrates its public commitment to Mama Certified through the distribution of physical, digital and portable communication tools. Community fliers and stickers will be distributed by Family Medicine/Pediatric Practices and Perinatal Outreach Team. Patient fliers prenatal/postpartum will be distributed by the Family Birthing Center.  Physical signage will include the placard at L&D Registration, printable posters and static clings throughout the Family Birthing Center.   Internal communications will include BSMH Central (Intranet), Friday Feels Newsletter, Leadership Townhalls, Market Newsletter. External communications will include press release, website, addition of the logo/info on participating hospital location pages and promotion on social media: Facebook, Instagram, and the Mercy Health Blog.
Training & Staff Engagement Training helps hospital staff recognize that biases exist and helps them take steps to reduce the impact of those biases on workplace interactions and decisions.	The hospital facility will participate in training and engagement of staff as it relates to Mama Certified.    The majority (>50%) of Women's Health and OBGYN staff will participate in the online ‘Intro to Mama Certified’ training offered by Cradle Cincinnati.   The Mama Certified training was built into this facility’s internal learning system. Workday module for Mama Certified training was assigned to current birthing center nurses, technicians and Hospital Unit Coordinators. New hires to birthing center will be assigned the training as part of their orientation. Each year Mercy Health determines required learnings for associates. The following trainings are currently available and assignable in our Learning System: 3R Bias and Anti-racism, Race Ethnicity Data Collection, Cultural Competency Essentials, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identification (SOGI). All Managers and above in the Cincinnati Market are required to complete 3R Bias and Anti-Racism training and New Leader Onboarding Plans include completion of this training within 90 days. Sexual Orientation and Gender Identification (SOGI) was required for all staff in 2023. The training draws specific attention to common inclusive behaviors and promoting environments of safety and respect. Two members of hospital facility leadership serve on the Cradle Cincinnati Learning Collaborative Circle of Advisors.
Center the Voices of Patients with Lived Experiences with Queens Village Centering the voices of those with lived experiences is essential for creating a more inclusive, equitable, and empathetic society. It fosters a culture of listening, learning, and empathy, ultimately leading to better outcomes for all members of society.	The hospital facility is actively working with Queens Village to center the voices of patients with lived experiences. The hospital facility has met with Cradle Cincinnati and Queens Village representatives to outline opportunities to co-create strategies supporting equitable maternal and infant care. The hospital facility will participate in quarterly dialogue meetings with a hospital facility-specific Queens Village Hospital Advisory Board with community representative and staff.  Mercy Health Cincinnati is working with Cradle Cincinnati to seat a Queen's Village Advisory Board that will support all Mercy Health birthing hospitals in Greater Cincinnati including Anderson Hospital. The team has recruited five Queens Village Board Members comprised of patients and staff who will work alongside the hospital facility’s representation to identify areas for focus and collaboration. The hospital facility will collaborate with Queens Village to co-create strategies supporting equitable maternal and infant health.
Pathways to Improvement Crafting strategies to improve maternal and infant health is essential for driving systemic change by enabling targeted interventions, fostering collaboration and engagement, facilitating learning and adaptation, and building momentum for sustained impact. It provides a structured approach to addressing complex systemic issues and achieving meaningful and lasting transformation.	The hospital facility has outlined the following strategies to improve maternal and infant health.  Bon Secours Mercy Health, with leadership representation from the Cincinnati Market, is participating in two national equity collaboratives: Premier’s Health Equity Collaborative and The Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s Pursing Equity Collaborative.  Mercy Health participates in Premier Perinatal Improvement Collaborative (PPCI) and Ohio Perinatal Quality Collaborative (OPQC).  Mercy Health is working on Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) Collection in Acute Care to increase awareness of social needs and connections to community-based support.     Mercy Health is working on increasing access to critical education and support for all parents regardless of their ability to pay through free childbrith education and free lactation support.  Mercy Health has developed a Leadership Council for Diversity and Inclusion (LCDI) with the goal to increase inclusion and equity in all strategic focus areas including Community, Workplace, Workforce, Patient Experience & Quality, and Innovation & Growth.  Mercy Health’s Perinatal Outreach Program is a team of Community Health Workers that provide education, advocacy, and support to pregnant mothers. They assess social needs and help remove obstacles contributing to high infant mortality rates, pre-term births, and racial disparities in maternal and infant health. The team has a particular focus on Black families and neighborhoods with historically high infant mortality rates.    Mercy Health collaborates with Produce Perks Midwest to provide healthy fruits and vegetables to pregnant moms who are experiencing food insecurity.  Mercy Health hosts weekly Baby Cafés. These breastfeeding support groups are designed to provide new parents with a safe and comfortable space to share their experiences and receive professional guidance. Mercy Health has 100 associates engaged in Employee Resource Groups (ERG): ABLE, Emerging Leaders, Nursing ONE Voice, PRIDE, Race Relations, Stars & Stripes, Women's Network, Working Parents.
	The hospital facility received 92.5% of the measurable points for the Infant Care Focus Area.	92.5%

Maternal Care