Last week, Texas Children’s Hospital’s Pavilion for Women was designated a level IV maternal care facility for the second time in five years.
The designation by the Texas Department of State Health Services EMS/Trauma System Office is an acknowledgment that the facility provides patients with the highest level of care available.
A level IV maternal care facility must prove that it can provide comprehensive care for pregnant and postpartum patients, from low-risk cases to the most complex medical, surgical, and obstetrical conditions that might present a higher risk of maternal mortality.
In 2013, the State of Texas passed legislation to establish neonatal and maternal level-of-care designations. The goal was to ensure that neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) and maternal care facilities are equipped with the expertise and resources needed to provide high-quality attention for mothers and their babies.
Texas was also one of the first states in the nation to ensure site visits for maternal care facilities to verify the level of care provided meets the Maternal Level of Care classifications.
The largest in the U.S., Texas Children’s Hospital’s NICU became the first in the state to receive a level IV NICU designation in the Spring of 2017.
“Since our initial designation visit, we have updated our quality assessment and performance improvement program by applying a health equity lens to our improvement efforts to ensure we are recognizing health disparities and eliminating them,” said Dr. Christina Davidson, a maternal-fetal medicine specialist and chief quality officer at Texas Children’s Pavilion for Women.
In 2019, Texas Children’s Hospital opened one of the nation’s first maternal intensive care units (ICUs), staffed with professionals specializing in critical care for women.
The maternal ICU provides specialized care for high-risk expectant mothers, such as those with severe conditions including sepsis, peripartum bleeding, placenta accreta, and maternal heart disease.