Caesarean delivery rates have been rising across the country for a decade, and state public health specialists are trying to understand why the rates are higher at some Massachusetts hospitals than others. Raw numbers of caesarean births show that five community hospitals, including one that serves high-risk women and newborns, had the highest proportion of caesareans. The five lowest rates were also at community hospitals. Teaching hospitals with high-level neonatal intensive care units, where one might expect women with high-risk pregnancies to go, are closer to the state average of 34.4%, the Boston Globe reports.
