Hawai‘i Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS)

The Hawai‘i Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) Program is a population-based survey designed to identify and monitor maternal experiences, attitudes and behaviors from preconception, through pregnancy and into early infancy. The overall goal of PRAMS is to improve infant health by impacting maternal and child health programs, policies, and maternal behaviors.

Just a few minutes of your time can help.

A PRAMS survey from the Hawai‘i State Department of Health is mailed to approximately 200 new mothers per month across all islands. New moms are randomly selected from the birth certificates of recently born infants. The survey includes questions that are asked by PRAMS programs in all states as well as Hawai‘i-specific questions.

All questions were developed and researched by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to identify relevant topics and issues, including unintended pregnancy, breastfeeding, smoking and alcohol use, insurance coverage, contraception use, post-partum depression and intimate partner violence.

Check your mail for the PRAMS survey from the Hawai‘i State Department of Health. Complete the survey and receive a $20 gift card.

WHY IS THE PRAMS QUESTIONNAIRE IMPORTANT FOR WOMEN’S HEALTH?

If you have recently had a baby in Hawai‘i and received a PRAMS questionnaire to complete, please do so. Answering the PRAMS questions helps doctors, health professionals, clinics, and organizations improve health care services for all women and children in Hawai‘i. A token of appreciation will be sent to you approximately 4 weeks after we receive your survey. All questionnaires are kept confidential as provided by Hawai‘i State law. No reports or responses will be traced back to mother’s participating in the survey. The Hawai‘i PRAMS birth sample is chosen from all women who recently had a live birth. PRAMS provide data not available from other sources about pregnancy and the first few months after birth. The gathered information can also be compared to other states participating in PRAMS which can then help maternal and child health organizations across the country improve their programs and policies. So, the information you provide on the survey CAN make a real difference!

HAWAI‘I PRAMS FAQ HANDOUTS If you have questions about the Hawai‘i PRAMS program or Hawai‘i PRAMS data, feel free to contact the Hawai‘i PRAMS Program Coordinator (contact info at bottom of page).  However, the Hawai‘i PRAMS program has also developed two handouts with answers to the most common questions received.

LINKS

Selected Hawai‘i PRAMS data and reports are available online at Hawaiʻi Health Matters and the Hawaiʻi Health Data Warehouse. Click here to see the PRAMS indicators in Hawaiʻi Health Matters and here to build your own PRAMS report in the Hawaiʻi Health Data Warehouse. To request record level data, click here.

PRAMS PROJECT GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

The overall goal of PRAMS is to reduce infant morbidity and mortality by impacting maternal and child health programs, policies and maternal behaviors during pregnancy and early infancy.

There are four PRAMS objectives:

  1. Collect high quality population-based data on maternal behaviors before and during pregnancy and during the early life of the infant.
  2. Conduct epidemiologic analysis and study of maternal behaviors and experiences during pregnancy and early infancy and determine their relationship to health outcomes.
  3. Translate data analyses into useable information for program planning, monitoring and evaluation.
  4. Increase public awareness of healthy pregnancy behaviors to improve maternal health across the life span.

HOW DOES PRAMS OPERATE?

The PRAMS questionnaire includes questions that are asked by PRAMS programs in all states (core) as well as Hawai‘i-specific questions. All questions were developed and researched by CDC to identify relevant topics and issues. The PRAMS questionnaire addresses priority maternal and child health issues such as unintended pregnancy, breastfeeding,  smoking and alcohol use, insurance coverage, contraception use, postpartum depression and intimate partner violence. Hawai‘i-specific questions are selected by the PRAMS Program, in partnership with the Hawai‘i PRAMS Steering Committee, other Department of Health program staff, and local community stakeholders.

HAWAI‘I PRAMS QUESTIONNAIRES

HAWAI‘I PRAMS REPORTS

Data collected by the Hawai‘i PRAMS program is used to enhance discussion about important health issues facing families in Hawai‘i. Reports are shared in various formats including state reports, factsheets, presentations, and published manuscripts.  We hope that these and other products produced using Hawai‘i PRAMS data will be useful information to improve the health of everyone in Hawai‘i.

Hawai‘i PRAMS 2009-2015 Trend Report: In 2019, the Hawai‘i PRAMS 2009-2015 Trend Report was released to describe data for 23 selected indicators of maternal and infant risk factors and outcomes that were selected based on feedback from the Hawai‘i PRAMS steering committee.  For 10 of the 23 indicators, this report is a continuation of the Hawai‘i PRAMS Trend Report 2000-2008 as these indicators did not change over time.  A copy of the report is available online at https://health.hawaii.gov/fhsd/files/2019/07/PRAMS-Trend-Report-ALL-FINAL6-2019-LR.pdf

Hawai‘i PRAMS 2000-2008 Trend Report: In 2010, the Hawai‘i PRAMS 2000-2008 Trend Report was released to highlight changes statewide in 16 indicators since Hawai‘i began collecting data. A copy of the report is available online at https://health.hawaii.gov/mchb/files/2013/05/pramstrendreport2010.pdf

County-specific trend reports are available online at the following links:

Kauai County:    https://health.hawaii.gov/mchb/files/2013/05/Kauai_County_PramsReport2011

Prevalence and Risk Factors for Self-Reported Postpartum Depression Symptoms (SRPDS) in Hawai‘i, 2012-2015: Postpartum depression (PPD) affects an estimated 10% to 20% of women in the United States, but little is known about the risk factors for PPD in Hawai‘i. This study sought to identify PPD risk factors and examine whether disparities exist in Hawai‘i. Aggregated 2012-2015 Hawai‘i Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) data from 5572 women with a recent live birth were analyzed. Read the full report here. 

Factsheets: Factsheets are used to increase discussion, focus further analyses, and present data that may be useful for program planning. The length of a factsheet is limited and is not meant to portray a complete picture for any one particular issue.

Archived Factsheets

PRESENTATIONS AND RESOURCES

HISTORY

PRAMS was developed in 1987 to supplement the birth certificate records by providing state-specific data on maternal behaviors and experiences to be used for planning and assessing maternal and child health programs. Hawai‘i PRAMS started out as a pilot program in 1999, with Hawai‘i becoming an official PRAMS state in 2000. Forty states and New York City currently participate in the PRAMS program (six others participated previously).  This represents approximately 78% of all U.S. live births. PRAMS provides ongoing monitoring of maternal behaviors to determine how to reduce infant deaths, decrease low birth weights and improve the overall health of the population in Hawai‘i.

For further information about the CDC PRAMS Program, please visit the CDC PRAMS website.

For more information about the Hawai‘i PRAMS Program, please contact:
Hawai‘i PRAMS Program Coordinator
Telephone:  808-733-4052
Email: [email protected]