Evening star., 1928-12-06
BABY SAVING NEED
!. Of CAPITAL SHOWN
Secretary Davis Shows
Death Rate High in Heart
of City-Steps Urged.

The greatest need for intensive work
10 save babies lives is in the central
part of this city, the annual report of
Secretary James J. Davis of the Labor
Department, made public today, de-
clared in enumerating several recon-
mendations, as the result of a survey
of infant and material mortality here,
made at the request of the Washington
Council of Social Agencies, with the CO.
operation of the Districts health officer
Recommendations in the Secretary'S
report included establishment of child
health centCrS in all precincts having
500 or more births annually: establish
ment or expansion of municipal child
hygiene centerS in precincts most need
ing improvement, as shown by high in
fant mortality rates and high Stillbirth
rates, establishment by the Health De-
partment of prenatal clinics in connec
ton with the child-hygiene cencers in
precincts showing large numbers of ma
ternal and infant deaths. especially still
births and deaths under one day Of
life; an appropriation sufficiently large
TO permit expansion and improvement
OF the maternity service at FreedmenS
IlOSOiidl, III was SdlU, HAS d very
high maternal death rate, and estab-
llshment of a maternity hospital in
Washington taking only obstetrical
cases.
ID. c. Conditions Studied.
Dealing with the District phase of
Infant and maternal mortality, the Sec
retary's report declared. in part:
The survey report includes statistical
analyses of birth certificates and of in
FAINT and maternal death certificates in
the District of Columbia and informa-
tion secured through visits by a bureau
physician to child healti, and prenatal
centers and to hospitals taking ma
ternity cases. Material secured through
questionnaires sent TO hospitals and
from printed reports was also utilized
In determining what are the conditions
in the District.
The study showed that the infant,
stillbirth, and maternal mortality rates
in the District of Columbia for the
three-year period. 1924 to 1926, were
higher than those for the birth-regis
tration area as whole and higher than
those for most cities which have 500,-
600 or more population and 1000 or
more colored births annually.
ColOred People Affected.
"The higher rates in the District we're
found to be due in part to the rates
among the colored population. which
were invariably above those for the col
ored population in the birth-registra-
ton area and above those for the col
ored population of most of the cities
under consideration. A larger proper
ton of both white and colored infants
in the District were found to die of ma
tai and prenatal causes than of the
white and colored infants of the birth
registration area as a whole, and the
puerperal mortality rates for both white
and colored mothers in the District
were found to exceed the rates for
mothers of the same races in the reg
issration area and in every large city
with similar racial elements in it's pop
ulation
The greatest need for intensive work
to save babies lives is shown to be in
the central part of the city. In three
precincts of this section the total in
fant mortality rates exceeded 100 per
1000 live births in the year 1925. In
this section of the city where there
was great loss of infant life, there
was little provision for infaI and pre-
natal care"