Infant Mortality and Racially and Culturally Sensitive Care

This paper addresses a public health issue-infant mortality-of which society has been aware since at least 1900. However, this issue does not receive the public and professional attention given to many other public health issues. The aim of this paper is to review the problem and present a synopsis of initiatives that have been taken to reconsider and revive, from a social work perspective, the person-environment concern, focus, and commitment to reduce infant mortality, especially among Blacks and other racial-ethnic minorities. The proposal calls for the help of inter-related and reinvigorated micro, mezzo, and macro levels of social work intervention in conjunction with the intervention of other professions, government officials, community leaders, and consumers of services.