News & Events

LA Best Babies Network and First 5 LA Address Needs of Pregnant Women
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March 1, 2011—This news article from First 5 LA describes the work of LA Best Babies Network and the Best Babies Collaboratives.

California Hospitals Need to Become More Baby-Friendly
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California WIC and UC Davis’s report: One Hospital at a Time: Overcoming Barriers to Breastfeeding finds that while there are more baby-friendly hospitals than ever in California, too many are still falling short. In 2009, 22 hospitals had more than 75% of mothers supplementing with formula at the time of discharge. Many of these hospitals serve the poorest families. At Pacific Alliance Medical Center in L.A. County, 99% of mothers used formula at discharge. L.A. County ranked 43rd  out of 46 in California in breastfeeding rates. One success story is California Hospital Medical Center, which, after become Baby-Friendly no longer appears on the list of hospitals with the highest supplementation rates

Teen Births Continue to Decline in California
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Teen births declined in California, in 2009, according to the California Department of Public Health, although rates remain higher than in many other developed nations. California’s teen birth rate declined from 35.2 births for every 1,000 teens in 2008 to 32.1 in 2009. In contrast, when teen births reached its peak in California in 1991, the teen birth rate was 70.9, more than twice as high as the rate in 2009. 

Dr. Jonathan Fielding appointed to federal healthcare panel
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Obama appoints L.A. County Public Health Director, Jonathan Fielding to panel on preventive care

Fielding Reyes

Dr. Fielding presenting an award of recognition to
former LA Best Babies Network executive director,
Dr. Carolina Reyes in 2009.

ACR 105 passes, officially designating an annual Perinatal Awareness Month observance in May
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May 3, 2010: Network Policy Director, Tony Gorham and other LA County Perinatal Mental Health Task Force members joined Assemblymember Pedro Nava (D-Santa Barbara) at a Capitol press conference in Sacramento for the official launch of the first annual Perinatal Depression Awareness month in Caliornia.

Read Assemblymember Nava's press release

Video: See video of Assemblymember Nava's press conference

Audio: Kimberly Wong, Founder and Chair of the L.A. County Perinatal Mental Health Task Force, says perinatal depression can affect any woman.(:18)

May 4, 2010: While in Sacramento, The Network also participated in a Roundtable discussion on Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorder, hosted by the California Legislative Women's Caucus

May 7, 2010: The L.A. County Board of Supervisors has also declared May Perinatal Depression Awareness Month. Read the release from the L.A. County Department of Health.

Read the Network's press release on ACR 105

Read the text of ACR 105