A Decade and Beyond: Perinatal Health in Ontario Report 2012–2024

BORN Ontario plays a vital role in advancing maternal and child health. This report highlights key trends and outcomes from the past twelve years. The findings tell an evolving story of pregnancy, birth, and newborn care in our province.

The trends are striking: births to individuals aged 35 and older have risen, mental health concerns during pregnancy have nearly doubled, early exclusive breastfeeding rates are declining, and the reporting of cannabis use in pregnancy has tripled since legalization. At the same time, we’ve seen improvements in early prenatal care access and newborn temperature management at NICU admission, increased care provided by midwives, a growing use of assisted reproductive technologies, and most recently an impressive adoption of new universal infant RSV prevention at birth.

These shifts reflect changes in our population and in the systems – within and outside of traditional healthcare models that support them. They challenge us to ask: Are we meeting the needs of today’s pregnant women, individuals, and families? And more importantly, how can we do better? One trend that demands our attention is the steady rise in C-section births (see Figure 3.2.5) affecting both first-time and repeat parents. Understanding these patterns is essential to ensuring that birthing options remain safe, evidence-informed, and person-centred.

This report is a call to action. Whether you are a clinician, policymaker, researcher, or advocate, the insights within these pages are tools — tools to drive curiosity, quality improvement, to plan and innovate, and to champion high quality equitable care and outcomes. Let this data spark conversations, inform decisions, fuel research questions, re-evaluate care models, and inspire bold steps toward better outcomes for all.

Alicia St Hill
Executive Director, BORN Ontario