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Ocean County Public Health Profile Report

Fetal Mortality Rate: Fetal Deaths per 1,000 Live Births Plus Fetal Deaths, 2018-2021

  • Ocean
    5.4
    95% Confidence Interval (4.7 - 6.2)
    State
    6.6
    U.S.
    5.8
  • Ocean Compared to State

    gauge ranking
    Description of Gauge

    Description of the Gauge

    This graphic is based on the county data to the left. It compares the county value of this indicator to the state overall value.
    • Excellent = The county's value on this indicator is BETTER than the state value, and the difference IS statistically significant.
    • Watch = The county's value is BETTER than state value, but the difference IS NOT statistically significant.
    • Improvement Needed = The county's value on this indicator is WORSE than the state value, but the difference IS NOT statistically significant.
    • Reason for Concern = The county's value on this indicator is WORSE than the state value, and the difference IS statistically significant.

    The county value is considered statistically significantly different from the state value if the state value is outside the range of the county's 95% confidence interval. If the county's data or 95% confidence interval information is not available, a blank gauge image will be displayed with the message, "missing information."
    NOTE: The labels used on the gauge graphic are meant to describe the county's status in plain language. The placement of the gauge needle is based solely on the statistical difference between the county and state values. When selecting priority health issues to work on, a county should take into account additional factors such as how much improvement could be made, the U.S. value, the statistical stability of the county number, the severity of the health condition, and whether the difference is clinically significant.

Why Is This Important?

The fetal mortality rate is a critical measure of a population's health and is an important indicator of fetal and maternal health status and medical care.

How Are We Doing?

There are approximately 600-700 fetal deaths of 20 or more weeks gestation among New Jersey residents each year. The New Jersey fetal mortality rate (FMR) in 2021 was 6.2 fetal deaths per 1,000 live births plus fetal deaths. The rate among non-Hispanic black mothers is two to three times the rates among other racial/ethnic groups.

What Is Being Done?

The Division of [http://www.nj.gov/health/fhs/ Family Health Services] in the New Jersey Department of Health administers programs to enhance the health, safety and well-being of families and communities in New Jersey. Several programs are aimed at improving children's health, including reducing fetal mortality. The Department of Health has provided state funding to improve perinatal public health services and birth outcomes in communities. Fetal deaths are reviewed by the [https://www.nj.gov/health/fhs/maternalchild/mchepi/mortality-reviews/ Fetal Infant Mortality Review] Team and recommendations to reduce future deaths are made to public and private sources of care including hospitals, clinics, and health care professionals throughout the state. Efforts are continuing to increase public and provider awareness of needs for greater access to maternal preconception care, more awareness of risky preconception and post-conception behavior and for better general maternal health care.

Healthy People Objective MICH-1.1:

Fetal deaths at 20 or more weeks of gestation
U.S. Target: 5.6 fetal deaths per 1,000 live births and fetal deaths

Note

**Too few fetal deaths to calculate a reliable rate. Confidence limits are not available for US data.

Data Sources

Birth Certificate Database, Office of Vital Statistics and Registry, New Jersey Department of Health   Fetal Death Certificate Database, Office of Vital Statistics and Registration, New Jersey Department of Health  

Measure Description for Fetal Mortality Rate

Definition: The number of resident fetal deaths of 20 or more weeks gestation per 1,000 resident live births plus fetal deaths of 20 or more weeks of gestation in the same year. A fetal death is death prior to the complete expulsion or extraction from its mother of a product of conception; the fetus shows no signs of life such as breathing or beating of the heart, pulsation of the umbilical cord, or definite movement of voluntary muscles.
Numerator: Number of resident fetal deaths of 20 or more weeks gestation in a given year
Denominator: Number of live births plus fetal deaths of 20 or more weeks gestation to resident mothers in the same year

Indicator Profile Report

Fetal Mortality Rate (exits this report)

Date Content Last Updated

08/22/2023
The information provided above is from the Department of Health's NJSHAD web site (https://nj.gov/health/shad). The information published on this website may be reproduced without permission. Please use the following citation: " Retrieved Thu, 28 March 2024 18:44:11 from Department of Health, New Jersey State Health Assessment Data Web site: https://nj.gov/health/shad ".

Content updated: no date