Assuring a healthy child represents a critical first step in improving the health of a community. The Coordinating Council of Broward, the Broward Regional Health Planning Council, the Broward Healthy Start Coalition and the South Florida Regional Planning Council undertook this study to examine infant mortality and teenage pregnancy in Broward County and to map its incidence by ZIP Codes in the County. These areas of study were selected in response to a request by the Florida Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services (HRS) District X, which has targeted reductions in these rates for Broward County in its strategic plan of action. A summary of the findings appears below:

• 549 infant deaths occurred in Broward County between 1992 and 1994. The number of infant deaths remained high over the three-year period.
• Although infant mortality includes all deaths during the first year of life, the majority of infant deaths occur within the first 7 days, most commonly from perinatal conditions such as low birth weight.
• The U.S. Surgeon General’s goal for the nation to achieve by the year 1990 was 9.0 infant deaths per 1,000 live births. All but two of the quadrants in Broward met the Surgeon General’s goal.
• Nonetheless, Broward’s infant mortality rate exceeds the state and national levels.
• Abnormally high infant mortality rates are found in certain parts of the County. Central Broward neighborhoods in Ft. Lauderdale and surrounding unincorporated parts of the County appear to be at greatest risk, although pockets of high infant mortality are found throughout the eastern quadrants of the County.
• Eastern Broward County reflected a significantly higher infant mortality rate -- 11.5 deaths per 1,000 live births -- than the western quadrants of the County where the mortality rate was 7.4 infant deaths per 1,000 live births.
• At 14.3 infant deaths per 1,000 live births, central east Broward has a significantly high infant mortality rate.
• 32.4% or almost 1/3 of all infant deaths occurred in central east Broward while this same area represented only 21.4% of the live births.
• ZIP Code 33311 (South of Oakland Park Boulevard, north of Broward Boulevard and west of North Andrews Avenue), the most populous of the 53 ZIP Codes in Broward County, ranked #1 (highest) in the number of infant deaths. A total of 86 infants from this ZIP Code died before their first birthday during the period 1992-94.
• ZIP Codes 33313 and 33312 also recorded high numbers of infant deaths during the study period. Together, these three neighborhoods, 33311, 33312 and 33313, accounted for more than one-quarter (26%) of Broward’s infant mortality during this period.
• Other pockets of high infant mortality included ZIP Code 33023 (area adjacent to the Florida Turnpike, particularly south of Hollywood Boulevard and north of the county line) and areas surrounding -- ZIP Codes 33024, 33025, 33009 33020. These five areas accounted for an additional 17.5% of the County’s infant deaths during the study period.
• Additional hot spots in north Broward included sections of Pompano Beach surrounding North Dixie Highway (ZIP Code 33060) and parts of Coral Springs north of Royal Palm Boulevard (ZIP Code 33065).
• 5,499 babies were born to teenage mothers in Broward County during the period 1992-94.
• Broward has a lower overall percentage of births to teenage mothers compared to the state; however, Broward exceeds the state figures for teen births to mothers less than 15 years of age and between the ages of 15 and 17 years:
• 9.6% of births in Broward are to teenage mothers vs. 10.2% for the state of Florida.
• 3.3% of teenage births in Broward are to mothers less than 15 years of age vs. 2.9% for the state of Florida.
• 39.1% of teenage births in Broward are to mothers between the ages of 15 and 17 years vs. 37.8% for the state of Florida.
• 69% of the teen births (mappable addressees) occurred in ZIP Codes east of State Road 7 while the area represents only 49% of all births in the County.
• ZIP Code 33311 ranked #1 with the highest number of teen births during the three- year study period and had the second highest rate of teen births. One-fifth (20%) of all teen births in Broward County came from this area.
• Three separate locations of "hot spot" areas are identified: central Broward, Pompano Beach and parts of Hollywood and Miramar in South Broward County.
• Assessing the resources and capacity of the current service delivery system addressing infant mortality and teen pregnancy is severely limited due to lack of a systematic means of requiring funding and capacity information from the provider community.
• Recommendations are made to create a digital database to enable geo-coding of client addresses so that neighborhood-specific information might be obtained to yield a clearer picture of these issues for service planning and targeting.

For further information about the report or to obtain copies, please contact Richard F. Ogburn.

This page and all contents prepared by the South Florida Regional Planning Council.
Updated on Jan. 28, 1997