Guide to Avoiding Unnecessary Cesarean Sections in New York State

April 21, 2010

Sidney Wolfe, M.D.
Public Citizen Health Research Group

Full report as a pdf
Statements from press conference

Introduction
Objectives
Methods
About New York
Variations in Cesarean Sections, VBACs, and Midwife Availability by County and by Hospital Within Each County
Healthy Outliers: Two New York Hospitals that Have Bucked the Trend
Factors Possibly Associated with Variation in Rates
What is Driving Cesareans in New York?
How a Woman Can Avoid an Unnecessary Cesarean in New York State
What Health Departments and Hospitals Can Do to Reduce Unnecessary Cesareans
New York Hospital Birth Statistics by County

 

Objectives

This report will examine the data for New York State hospitals, focusing on 2007, the most recent year for which verified data are available. Our goal is twofold:

1. To examine how the cesarean section (both overall and primary) and VBAC rates vary by level of care, county, and hospital.

2. To identify potential interventions ― both systemic and individual — to lower the rate.

The purpose of all of this, as indicated in the title of this report, is to help women in New York avoid unnecessary cesarean sections.