Smart Care California Recognizes Mammoth Hospital for Reducing C-Sections

Mammoth Hospital OB/GYNs, Maxine Karimoto, MD, and MaryAlice Lopez, MD

Mammoth Hospital was one of 111 California hospitals to have met or surpassed a federal target aimed at reducing Cesarean births (C-sections) for first-time mothers with low-risk pregnancies, according to the California Health and Human Services Agency (CHHS). This is the second year in a row Mammoth Hospital has earned this distinction.

The agency announced the achievement awards to hospitals on behalf of Smart Care California, a coalition of public and private health care purchasers that collectively purchase or manage care for more than 16 million people statewide – or 40 percent of all Californians.

“The decline in California’s rate for low-risk, first birth C-sections will lead to healthier babies and mothers,” said CHHS Secretary Diana Dooley. “Thanks to the hospitals and their staff for their hard work in achieving this measurable progress.”

While life-saving in some circumstances, unnecessary C-sections can pose serious risks to mothers. To respond to a rapid rise in unnecessary C-sections across the United States, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services adopted the Healthy People 2020 target of reducing nationwide C-section rates for low-risk, first births to 23.9 percent.

“We are proud to continue our primary initiative to promote safe, natural childbirth in our Mammoth birthing center, says Dr. Maxine Karimoto. “We’ve worked very hard within our facility to create a cohesive sense of teamwork between all disciplines. This includes obstetrics, pediatrics, anesthesia, nursing and ancillary staff, dietary, hospital administration, a local Lamaze instructor, and county services to deliver comprehensive maternal child health care and even start up birthing classes for our community. It truly is an exciting time at Mammoth Hospital and I’m thankful that our efforts have produced real, meaningful outcomes recognized by the state of California.”

“We applaud the hospitals that have hit the 23.9 percent target two years in a row,” said Elliott Main, M.D., who leads the California Maternity Care Quality Collaborative (CMQCC), a multi-stakeholder organization committed to ending preventable morbidity, mortality and racial disparities in California maternity care. “Sustainability is hard, but these hospitals have shown it can be done. It involves a commitment from leadership and the engagement of the entire team of nurses and doctors.”