Florida Program Assists Minority Moms-to-Be

The Targeted Outreach for Pregnant Women Act, passed by the Florida Legislature in 1999, directed the state Department of Health to establish an outreach program for high-risk pregnant women -- those who may not seek prenatal care, who may struggle with substance abuse, or who are HIV-infected -- to link them to services and information. The act spawned programs that were launched last December in five counties -- Broward, Palm Beach, Miami-Dade, Orange and Hillsborough.

Nationwide, Florida ranks second in female and pediatric AIDS cases. According to the Florida Department of Health, statewide, one in 50 blacks are infected with HIV. In addition, HIV infection is the leading cause of death among black women ages 25 to 44.

Marlinda Jefferson of the Broward County Health Department said outreach programs can make a difference in slowing the spread of AIDS. Monse Garza, a 21-year old Mexican-American whose baby is due in February, said she learned of the program from a friend who had been involved earlier. "I didn't know who to go to or what to do because of the language [barriers]," said Garza. Betty DeSoto of Minority Development and Empowerment is steadily on the case, looking out for women who might be pregnant and at risk for contracting AIDS and passing it along to their unborn children. Once she has detected a mother-to-be, especially a Spanish-speaking or Haitian woman, she helps her negotiate the system, which may be foreign to her, and directs her to services she may need.

Officials say the program is catching on and that testing is important in the battle to reduce AIDS in minority communities. Often, early detection in a pregnancy can allow the mother to be treated with drugs such as AZT, which will reduce the baby's chances of contracting HIV. Through August 2000, 330 healthy babies have been born to clients in the program. Officials say without intervention, possibly one-third of those babies would have been born HIV-infected or substance-exposed.

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