Maternal Health and Well-being

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It is important for pediatricians and care teams to have an early understanding of each family’s medical and social history that may impact family’s overall well-being and healthy child development. All staff should be aware of health complications that occur during pregnancy and up to one year after delivery. Some expecting families may not recognize the symptoms or know when it is necessary to seek medical attention.

Build awareness

More than 80% of pregnancy-related deaths are preventable. A death is preventable if there was at least some chance it could have been avoided with reasonable changes to patient, family, provider, facility, system, and/or community factors.

63% of pregnancy-related deaths occur between the day of delivery and up to one year postpartum with maternal deaths during pregnancy representing 26% and the day of delivery representing 11%.

Educate yourself and patients’ caregivers on the symptoms and warning signs

Build partnerships

Build partnerships for high-quality referrals and bi-directional communication with

Health providers: obstetricians/gynecologists, advanced practice nurses, certified nurse/ midwives, birthing hospitals and centers in your community, and pregnancy medical homes.
Community health services: community-based doulas, home visiting services, WIC, and community health workers, Mom & Baby Mobile Health Centers®, and perinatal quality collaboratives.
Health service delivery models: Mother and Baby, Chicago Parent, Centering Pregnancy and Parenting.

Learn from families’ experiences

Hear Her Campaign from CDC features compelling stories from women about their pregnancy and birth experiences, complications, and conditions that affected them and how they got help
Supporting Black Women’s Maternal Health Journey by the American Heart Association.
Awareness to Action” Dismantling Bias in Maternal and Infant Healthcare from March of Dimes with CME and CNE.
Addressing Mental Health in BIPOC Communities: Key Considerations for Maternal Child Health from the Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs (AMCHP).

AAP Recommendations

Caregiver Mental Health, Family Safety, and Equity

Prenatal and Newborn Clinical Care and Prevention

Infant Feeding, Lactation, and Milk Safety

Identification and Support of Maternal Health Needs

Breastfeeding

AAP policies, tools, and resources for professionals.

Breastfeeding Laws and Workplace Support

Learn how pediatricians can support breastfeeding workers.

Congenital Cytomegalovirus (CMV)

One of the most common infectious causes of birth defects.

Developmental Surveillance and Screening

Learn more about developmental surveillance and screening to identify and support delays early.

Early Relational Health

Explore the role of early relationships and experiences in healthy development across a child’s lifetime.

Hepatitis C

One of the most common viral hepatitis diseases found in the US often transmitted perinatally.

Intimate Partner Violence

A pervasive public health problem impacting 1 in 4 women in the US.

Maternal and Infant Opioid Use

Pediatricians working with families affected by opioid use have the opportunity to identify and engage mothers into treatment and recovery.

Perinatal Mental Health Support

Tools and resources for pediatric health care providers to connect with parents experiencing mental health challenges.

Perinatal Depression Screening

Perinatal depression is the most common obstetric complication in the United States.

Prenatal Alcohol Exposure and FASDs

Resources to raise awareness, promote screening, and encourage referral for fetal alcohol spectrum disorders.

Syphilis

Discover essential information about congenital syphilis, its causes, effects and prevention strategies during pregnancy.

Last Updated

02/02/2026

Source

American Academy of Pediatrics

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