Infant Mortality Rates in U.S. Hospitals
While we have some of the best hospitals and medical doctors in the world, the U.S. has one of the worst possible rates of infant mortality of any industrialized country. There are a number of issues that promote this sad state of birth injury in American hospitals, including respect for a mother’s birth plan and doctors’ readiness to perform c-sections, especially elective cesarean section.
Because of certain hospital birth practices, birth injuries in American hospitals are far too common. The chart below lists the top five worst countries for infant mortality, followed by a snapshot of where the United States falls as 180th (neighbors with Croatia and South Korea), and shows the best 22 birth countries, where the United States should rank.
The following data is taken from CIA World Fact Book, 2007.
| Rank |
Country |
Infant mortality rate
(deaths/1,000 live births) |
| 1 |
Angola |
184.44 |
| 2 |
Sierra Leone |
158.27 |
| 3 |
Afghanistan |
157.43 |
| 4 |
Liberia |
149.73 |
| 5 |
Niger |
116.83 |
| 176 |
Guam |
6.68 |
| 177 |
Lithuania |
6.68 |
| 178 |
Belarus |
6.63 |
| 179 |
Croatia |
6.60 |
| 180 |
United States |
6.37 |
| 181 |
Korea, South |
6.05 |
| 182 |
Cuba |
6.04 |
| 183 |
Faroe Islands |
6.01 |
| 184 |
Isle of Man |
5.72 |
199 |
Canada |
4.63 |
200 |
Guernsey |
4.59 |
201 |
Liechtenstein |
4.58 |
202 |
Australia |
4.57 |
203 |
Belgium |
4.56 |
204 |
Austria |
4.54 |
| 205 |
Denmark |
4.45 |
| 206 |
Slovenia |
4.35 |
| 207 |
Macau |
4.33 |
| 208 |
Spain |
4.31 |
| 209 |
Switzerland |
4.28 |
| 210 |
Germany |
4.08 |
| 211 |
Andorra |
4.03 |
| 212 |
Czech Republic |
3.86 |
| 213 |
Malta |
3.82 |
| 214 |
Norway |
3.64 |
| 215 |
Finland |
3.52 |
| 216 |
France |
3.41 |
| 217 |
Iceland |
3.27 |
| 218 |
Hong Kong |
2.94 |
| 219 |
Japan |
2.80 |
| 220 |
Sweden |
2.76 |
| 221 |
Singapore |
2.30 |
Click for the CIA Fact Book’s complete list of birth mortality among nations.
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