Race & Ethnicity Data

Developing a Common Language for Public Health Surveillance in Hawaii

  • Catherine A. Sorensen Hawai`i Department of Health
  • Betty Wood Hawai`i Department of Health
  • Edward W. Prince Hawai`i Department of Health

Abstract

To create a better understanding of Hawai`i’s birthing population so that culturally appropriate strategies to prevent infant mortality could be developed, we undertook an analysis of population-based perinatal data collected in Hawai`i for the years 2000 and 2001. The data were collected by the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS). In this system, a stratified random sample of women who delivered a live born infant are mailed a self-administered questionnaire two to six months after they deliver, with telephone follow-up for those who do not respond. A bivariate analyses of maternal characteristics of singleton infants and the prevalence of low birth weight (<2,500 grams) and preterm delivery (<37 weeks gestational age) at the time of PRAMS survey were conducted using chi-square test statistics. To assess the independent effects of the sociodemographic and behavioral variables on the outcome, we constructed logistic regression models adjusting for age, education, race/ethnicity, marital status, household income, area of residence, 1st trimester entry into prenatal care, 3rd trimester smoking or drinking alcohol, illegal drug use, and being the victim of physical abuse during the pregnancy. We estimated model coefficients by using unconditional maximum likelihood methods and we estimated relative risks by calculating adjusted odds ratios (aORs). A total of 6,251 women were sampled and 5,009 responded, for a response rate of 80%. Most women (98.6%) had some prenatal care, although nearly 20% entered care in the second or third trimester. Women who were less than 20 years of age (aOR 1.7; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.1-2.6) or had only a high school education (aOR 1.5; 95% CI 1.1-2.0) were more likely to have delivered a low birth weight infant than were older more educated women. After adjustment, only women who were not married were more likely to have had a preterm delivery than were married women (aOR 1.5; 95% CI 1.1-2.0). In conclusion, we found that risk factors for low birth weight and preterm delivery among singleton infants in Hawai`i were not different from risk factors reported for mainland populations, namely maternal age, education and marital status. Hawai`i PRAMS has been a valuable source of data about the women giving birth in Hawai`i. Further analyses of these perinatal data should provide useful information for clinicians, policymakers and public health advocates.
Published
2003-12-31
How to Cite
Sorensen, C. A., Wood, B., & Prince, E. W. (2003). Race & Ethnicity Data: Developing a Common Language for Public Health Surveillance in Hawaii. Californian Journal of Health Promotion, 1(SI), 91-104. https://doi.org/10.32398/cjhp.v1iSI.561