Morris County:

As a whole, the state of Maternal/Child Health in Morris County is positive.  The most pressing concerns at the county level are infant mortality (infants that die within their first year of life) and teen births; Morris performs worse than the majority of NJ Counties for these measures.

Digging deeper, however, significant disparities are found in other maternal/child health indicators. Black Mothers and younger Mothers (ages 18-24) get early prenatal care at lower rates than the rest of the population. However, data shows that White mothers have higher rates of both preterm births and very preterm births, as well as babies with very low birth weights. Morris is, however, doing well in terms the rate of children and families living in poverty.

Additionally, Childhood vaccination rates during 2013-2014 are slightly lower (96.7%) than the average (mean) rate for all counties in New Jersey (97.0 %).  This indicator shows the percentage of enrolled kindergarten students that have received all required immunizations. Required immunizations include 4+ DTP, 3+ Polio, 2+ MMR, 3+ Hep B, and 1+ Var or physician documented varicella disease. 

Union County:

Overall, the state of Maternal/Child Health in Union County has room for improvement.  The most pressing concerns at the county level include infant mortality (infants that die within their first year of life), babies with very low birth weights, and the teen birthrate.  For all three of these indicators, Union County performs worse than the majority of NJ Counties, and significant disparities are seen.  For example, mothers who are Black experience almost double the rate of infant mortality than their peers (10 deaths/1,000 live births vs. 5.4 deaths/live births for the county as a whole).  Asian mothers, Black mothers, and older mothers (ages 40-44) are two times as likely to give birth to babies with very low birth weight (approximately 3% vs. 1.6% for the county).  Although the teen birthrate in Union County is trending downwards, it is twice as high for Hispanic teens than for the county as a whole (20 live births/1,000 females aged 15-17 vs. 9.8 for the county).

Also of note, only 78.5% of mothers in Union County receive early prenatal care, which could be influencing these other numbers.

Finally, Union County is doing a good job of ensuring its kindergarteners have the required immunizations and the rates of children and families living in poverty are low.

Sussex County:

Overall, the state of Maternal/Child Health in Sussex County has room for improvement. The most pressing concerns at the county level include infant mortality (infants that die within their first year of life) and infants with very low birthrates. For both of these indicators, Sussex County performs worse than the majority of NJ Counties. Due to lack of data and small sample sizes, information on ethnic/racial and age disparities are not available for these Sussex County indicators, nor is information on the teen birthrate for Sussex County.

Also of note, the rates for preterm births and very preterm births in Sussex County are right at the midpoint of the rates for all NJ Counties, and only 88.6% of mothers in Sussex County receive early prenatal care, which could be influencing these other numbers.

Finally, Sussex County has room for improvement for ensuring its kindergarteners have the required immunizations (the Sussex county rate falls below the average for NJ Counties). However, on a positive note, the rates of children and families living in poverty in Sussex County are low.

We asked leaders across North Jersey to share with us their perspective on what is working and what is not in producing healthy communities. Don't see your perspective here yet? Add your voice by answering a few brief questions. 

What's Working?

• “I think there is more being offered for children/adolescents with bullying, although I don't believe we are where we need to be. I do think people are coming forward and making change.”

• “[Our] programs were given lots of equipment and newsletter for the parents. The program was developed to combat childhood obesity. I have seen that this program is working especially with the younger age group. Teaching children at a very young age about reading labels, keep moving is vital in the fight against obesity. Education is the key!”

• “We are addressing the growing concern of childhood obesity by offering all 7th graders a free one year membership and teaching them the basics of fitness and a healthy lifestyle through small group training.”

• “I see a large number of young children, 2 months to 12 years old. What is working for the health of my community as it relates to immunizations and physicals is our full time nurse who screens, monitors and reminds parents on behalf of their children s health and wellness.”

What Needs to Change

• “I'd like to see more peer support programs available for youth. Peer support builds resilience, breaks down barriers, improves communication, develops leadership, and decreases isolation. The peer support model provided by [some local] organizations work beautifully and powerfully for children grieving the loss of a parent or sibling due to death. But the model is also applicable for supporting children dealing with any type of loss and any type of life challenge. As a community-based model it is simple and affordable and yet life-changing and transformative.”

• “We would like to see a focus on childhood obesity and school wellness.”

• “We need to lower childhood obesity rates.”

• “We need to address childhood obesity, especially among the underserved.”

• “[We need] greater involvement of schools in nutrition education.”

• “Children are underserved.”

• “There should be improved emphasis on exercise in schools."