Pregnancy-Associated Mortality Review

Welcome to the Ohio Department of Health, Pregnancy-Associated Mortality Review Program Webpage

The Pregnancy-Associated Mortality Review (PAMR) Program was established in 2010 at the Ohio Department of Health (ODH). As an enhanced surveillance program, PAMR monitors maternal mortality in Ohio. PAMR processes have been codified into  Ohio Revised Code (ORC) 3738. The ODH PAMR Staff are responsible for day-to-day surveillance activities and facilitating the Multidisciplinary PAMR Committee. Figure 1 explains the PAMR process for reviewing pregnancy-associated deaths.

The PAMR Process is as follows:

1. ODH Bureau of Vital Statistics identifies all pregnancy-associated deaths.
2. ODH PAMR staff seeks various sources of records for abstraction.
3. ODH PAMR staff creates de-identified case summaries for review.
4. PAMR Multidisciplinary Committee reviews each death and case summary.
5. PAMR Multidisciplinary Committee determines pregnancy-relatedness, preventability, contributing factors & recommendations.
6. ODH PAMR staff enter case data into a database where it can be extracted and analyzed.

The PAMR Program is comprised of 2 groups, each with distinct roles:

1. The Multidisciplinary Review Committee - The Multidisciplinary Review Committee is made up of individuals from a diverse set of disciplines and backgrounds with specific expertise to review each maternal health. For a list of recommended disciplines, please refer to the ReviewtoAction.org website.
    
2. The ODH PAMR Staff includes epidemiologists, researchers, nurse abstractors, and program consultants. Through external funding, the ODH PAMR staff have been able to implement data-informed activities and programs to reduce maternal morbidity and mortality in Ohio. These data-informed activities and programs have been made possible through federal grants from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) (see Federal Funding). The ODH PAMR Staff is also responsible for facilitating the Ohio Council to Advance Maternal Health (OH-CAMH), the statewide maternal health task force in Ohio.

Site directory and descriptions

• Federal Funding - An overview of current PAMR program federal funding
   
• Activities and Initiatives - Current activities and initiatives the PAMR program is actively implementing
   
• Ohio Council to Advance Maternal Health Information regarding the Ohio Council to Advance Maternal Health, future meeting dates, and archived meeting recordings and newsletters
   
• Trainings and Webinars - Descriptions and registration information for the current trainings opportunities being offered by the PAMR program and archived webinars
   
• Data and Reports -  Data reports and briefs on Ohio's Maternal Mortality and Severe Maternal Morbidity
   
• ODH Resources - Materials and resources developed by the ODH PAMR Program
   
• Partner Resources - Websites and articles from maternal health experts including the Center's for Disease Control (CDC), Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health (AIM), and the Surgeon General.