Reducing C-Sections Leads to Healthier Babies, Hospital Awards
Jun 5, 2023
Stephanie Breitbart
Picture of a pregnant woman, holding her belly, with the words Sutter Recognized for High-Quality Maternity Care by CMQCC written over top

It’s one of the most common surgeries performed in the United States, and a procedure — when not medically necessary – that public health efforts are focused on reducing. For some mothers, cesarean deliveries (C-sections) can be the safest or only way to deliver a healthy newborn, but they can also carry a higher risk of complications, longer recoveries and negative outcomes for mothers and babies.

In the United States, nearly one of three babies enters the world through C-section, which is higher than national health goals. Reducing the overall number of medically unnecessary C-section births among first-time moms with low-risk births is a primary objective in the U.S. Department of Health’s Healthy People 2030 campaign.

Sutter hospitals, which have among the lowest C-section rates in California, have developed and implemented many programs over the past decade to improve the care and safety of mothers and babies through pregnancy, labor and delivery.

“We delivered nearly 26,000 babies across the Sutter system last year,” said Dr. William Isenberg, Sutter Health chief medical and quality officer. “Our ongoing commitment to maternity care quality, including our Innovation Lab for Maternal Health/Birth Equity dedicated to help drive more equitable health outcomes, helps ensure babies can get the best possible start across Northern California.”

Sutter’s efforts in reducing cesarean births for first-time moms with low-risk pregnancies was recently recognized by the California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative Quality and Engagement Awards for 2023. The “Quality & Sustainability Award for NTSV Cesarean Delivery” honors were one of six award categories in which Sutter hospitals earned recognition.

CMQCC recognized 121 hospitals in the state for going above and beyond to provide high quality care to California’s mothers, birthing people, and their families in 2022. Sutter Health was the only health system to receive an award, all other recipients were individual hospitals.

“The CMQCC Maternal Data Center (MDC) model gives us the opportunity to share data, learn and incorporate best practices into what we’re doing,” said Dr. Isenberg. “Our maternity care teams have worked hard to enhance quality and safety at our hospitals to ensure we are providing the best care for mothers and babies —so it’s especially gratifying to receive honors in this area.”

Sutter Health hospitals recognized by CMQCC include:

Early Implementers Award

Awarded to hospitals that submitted 12-month data on Anemia on Admission, or QBL Cumulative Value.

  • Sutter Health System (Anemia on Admission measures)
  • Sutter Alta Bates Summit Medical Center
  • Sutter Eden Medical Center
  • Sutter Maternity & Surgery Center of Santa Cruz
  • Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento
  • Sutter Memorial Medical Center
  • Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital
  • Sutter Tracy Community Hospital

Superstar Award: Small Birth Volume Hospitals

Awarded to hospitals with fewer than 1,000 annual births that exhibited high levels of engagement with the MDC.

  • Sutter Maternity & Surgery Center of Santa Cruz

Superstar Award: Medium Birth Volume Hospitals

Awarded to hospitals with between 1,000 and 2,499 annual births that exhibited high levels of engagement with the MDC.

  • Sutter Davis Hospital
  • Sutter Memorial Medical Center, Modesto

Superstar Award: Large Birth Volume Hospitals

Awarded to hospitals with 2,500 or greater annual births that exhibited high levels of engagement with the MDC.

  • Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento

Quality & Sustainability Award: NTSV Cesarean Delivery Rate (PC-02)

Awarded to hospitals that achieved California’s Healthy People 2020 and Healthy People 2030 NTSV Cesarean Birth target rates of 23.9% or below for calendar year 2020, and 23.6% or below for calendar years 2021 and 2022.

  • Sutter Alta Bates Summit Medical Center
  • Sutter California Pacific Medical Center-Van Ness Campus
  • Sutter Coast Hospital
  • Sutter Davis Hospital
  • Sutter Delta Medical Center
  • Sutter Eden Medical Center
  • Sutter Lakeside Hospital
  • Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento
  • Sutter Memorial Medical Center

Quality & Sustainability Award: QI Academy Collaborative Hospitals

Awarded to hospitals that meet and maintain their target rate for their selected Quality Initiative in QI Academy.

  • Sutter Mills-Peninsula Medical Center

Currently, nearly all California birthing hospitals are active CMQCC members and are using the MDC to track maternity care performance and identify perinatal quality improvement opportunities.  To see a full list of 2023 award winners and detailed descriptions of each award, please visit the CMQCC Awards page.

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