Yale New Haven Health has begun participating in the Connecticut Urgent Maternal Warning Signs Bracelet Initiative, a program aimed at reducing preventable pregnancy-related complications across the state.
Under this initiative, postpartum patients at Yale New Haven Health facilities will receive an orange bracelet before being discharged. The bracelet is intended to be worn for 12 weeks following childbirth. It serves as a reminder for patients to monitor their health and signals to healthcare providers and emergency responders that the wearer is recently postpartum.
The purpose of the bracelet is to encourage quick recognition of urgent maternal warning signs, which include symptoms related to serious conditions such as eclampsia, blood clots, sepsis, cardiomyopathy, and perinatal depression. Early identification and treatment of these conditions can be critical in preventing life-threatening outcomes.
In addition to distributing bracelets and educational materials to patients, the initiative involves training healthcare professionals and emergency medical services staff on how to respond when a patient wearing the bracelet seeks care. The Connecticut Urgent Maternal Warning Signs Bracelet Initiative is described as one of the first statewide programs of its kind.
The program is led by the Connecticut Perinatal Quality Collaborative and the Connecticut Hospital Association. Funding comes from the Connecticut Department of Public Health’s Maternal Health Innovation Grant, with additional support from the Connecticut Department of Children and Families.
"Yale New Haven Health (YNHHS), the largest and most comprehensive healthcare system in Connecticut, is recognized for advanced clinical care, quality, service, cost effectiveness and commitment to improving the health status of the communities it serves. YNHHS includes five hospitals – Bridgeport, Greenwich, Lawrence + Memorial, Westerly and Yale New Haven hospitals, several specialty networks and Northeast Medical Group, a non-profit medical foundation with several hundred community-based and hospital-employed physicians. YNHHS is affiliated with Yale University and Yale Medicine, the clinical practice of the Yale School of Medicine and the largest academic multi-specialty practice in New England. Yale New Haven Hospital is the primary teaching hospital of Yale School of Medicine." (www.ynhhs.org)
More information about the Bracelet Initiative can be found at cthosp.org/bracelet.
