Kent Earns Top Score in CDC Infant Nutrition Survey

WARWICK, RI — Kent Hospital’s Women’s Care Unit scored 94 in the 2018 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Maternity Practices in Infant Nutrition and Care (mPINC) survey, placing it among the top hospitals in the nation.

Among the 2,045 US hospitals that participated in the survey, the average score is 79. For hospitals the same size at Kent Hospital, the score is 78, according to an announcement from Kent Hospital. The survey demonstrates Kent’s commitment to quality improvement in maternity practices that support optimal infant nutrition, according to the statement.

The survey assesses maternity care practices and provides feedback to encourage hospitals to make improvements that better support breastfeeding, according to the CDC. About every 2 years, CDC invites all hospitals across the country to complete the mPINC survey. Questions focus on specific parts of hospital maternity care that affect how babies are fed.

Doctors, nurses, and hospital administrators can use mPINC data to improve care practices and policies to better support their maternity patients. CDC sends a report to every participating hospital showing specific changes they can make to support breastfeeding mothers.

State health departments and other stakeholders can use mPINC data to work together with partner agencies, organizations, policy makers, and health professionals to improve evidence-based maternity care practices and policies at hospitals in their state.