Season 11 • Episode 891

891 - B'More For Healthy Babies: A Look Back at 15 Years of Infant Mortality Reduction in Baltimore

May 7, 2025

25:28

Children's Health Health Equity Public Health

Episode Description

About this episode:

In the early 2000s, babies in Baltimore were dying at an alarming rate. In this episode: a look at Baltimore's enormously successful health program to reduce infant mortality and close unacceptable disparities in infant death and how it has developed into a program that offers support and resources for individuals and families across the lifespan.

Guests:

Dr. Josh Sharfstein is the vice dean for public health practice and community engagement at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and a former Baltimore City Health Commissioner.

Rebecca Dineen is the assistant commissioner for Maternal and Child Health at the Baltimore City Health Department.

Stacey Stephens is the director and clinical instructor of B'More For Healthy Babies at Promise Heights.

Host:

Stephanie Desmon, MA, is a former journalist, author, and the director of public relations and communications for the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Show links and related content:

B'More For Healthy Babies
B'More for Healthy Babies Turns 15—Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs
The Public Health Strategy Behind Baltimore's Record-Low Infant Mortality Rate—Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Baltimore City Youth Data Scorecard: Babies Born Healthy Indicator Details—Baltimore's Promise
Babies kept dying in Baltimore. People worked together to understand why.—Maryland Matters

Transcript information:

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