AdventHealth for Women Provides Fourth Trimester Care for Families
By Cheryn Stone
March 13, 2025 at 6:03 PM EDT
AdventHealth for Women Fourth Trimester program supports mothers in the months immediately following birth while addressing racial and ethnic disparities in maternal morbidity.
Pregnancy is typically divided into trimesters. A new AdventHealth for Women program focuses on the fourth trimester, meaning the twelve weeks after delivery.
Coordinators work with mothers enrolled in the initiative before they leave the hospital on taking care of themselves once they get home. This program to strengthen postpartum care was formed in response to a trend — hospital data showed higher readmission rates for Black and African American mothers following C-section delivery compared to white mothers, and postpartum high blood pressure was the leading cause for readmission.
Adventhealth for Women’s Fourth Trimester program empowered Eliza Gordon with the knowledge and tools to recognize that there was something seriously wrong with her health and she needed to return to the hospital. It happened shortly after she brought her third child, a little girl named Trinity, to their home in DeLand. Gordon joins Engage to discuss the role of the Fourth Trimester program in her family’s well-being.
Gordon connected with Erike King, a Care Coordinator for AdventHealth for Women’s Fourth Trimester Program. King works one-on-one with moms, ensuring they get the post-partum care needed. She also educates them about managing high blood pressure and other health concerns. King joins Engage to discuss her commitment to reducing maternal morbidity rates.
AdventHealth for Women is already expanding this program. It found that since its inception, there has been a 20% reduction in re-admissions for Black mothers who had C-sections. The program tackles the racial and ethnic disparities that exist in maternal morbidity and mortality in the U.S. The National Institutes of Health reports that compared to white women, Black women are three to four times more likely to die from complications during pregnancy or the year after.
Dr. Rizwana Fareeduddin, Executive Medical Director for Women’s Services at AdventHealth for Women, joins Engage to discuss changing those statistics and the trends AdventHealth saw that compelled them to create this program.
Coordinators work with mothers enrolled in the initiative before they leave the hospital on taking care of themselves once they get home. This program to strengthen postpartum care was formed in response to a trend — hospital data showed higher readmission rates for Black and African American mothers following C-section delivery compared to white mothers, and postpartum high blood pressure was the leading cause for readmission.
Adventhealth for Women’s Fourth Trimester program empowered Eliza Gordon with the knowledge and tools to recognize that there was something seriously wrong with her health and she needed to return to the hospital. It happened shortly after she brought her third child, a little girl named Trinity, to their home in DeLand. Gordon joins Engage to discuss the role of the Fourth Trimester program in her family’s well-being.
Gordon connected with Erike King, a Care Coordinator for AdventHealth for Women’s Fourth Trimester Program. King works one-on-one with moms, ensuring they get the post-partum care needed. She also educates them about managing high blood pressure and other health concerns. King joins Engage to discuss her commitment to reducing maternal morbidity rates.
AdventHealth for Women is already expanding this program. It found that since its inception, there has been a 20% reduction in re-admissions for Black mothers who had C-sections. The program tackles the racial and ethnic disparities that exist in maternal morbidity and mortality in the U.S. The National Institutes of Health reports that compared to white women, Black women are three to four times more likely to die from complications during pregnancy or the year after.
Dr. Rizwana Fareeduddin, Executive Medical Director for Women’s Services at AdventHealth for Women, joins Engage to discuss changing those statistics and the trends AdventHealth saw that compelled them to create this program.