Communication among Perinatal Team

This report, covering the period 2016-2018, confirms that psychiatric causes (largely dominated by suicides) are the leading cause of maternal mortality up to 1 year after childbirth, a finding already made in the previous 2013-2015 report. There were 47 deaths from psychiatric causes in 3 years, including 45 maternal suicides, giving a maternal mortality ratio (MMR) of 2.1 per 100,000 live births (NV) (IC95% 1.4-2.6). The median time to suicide was 138 days post partum. This group represents 17.3% (16.5% for suicides) of all maternal deaths for the period...

AIM: The aim of this study was to investigate Norwegian community midwiveś(CMs) experience of collaboration when caring for pregnant women with vulnerabilities. We wanted to determine which professionals and services are considered important and with whom they have written agreements and good lines of communication. Furthermore, which tools are used in collaboration and if any background factors enhance collaboration. BACKGROUND: Vulnerable pregnant women may require more than standard antenatal care, involving interdisciplinary collaboration...

Background. Significant disruptions in the perinatal continuum of care occur postpartum in India, despite it being a critical time to optimize maternal health and wellbeing. Group-oriented mHealth approaches may help mitigate the impact of limited access to care and the lack of social support that characterize this period. Our team developed and pilot tested a provider-moderated group intervention to increase education, communication with providers, to refer participants to in-person care, and to connect them with a virtual social support group of other mothers with similarly aged infants through weekly calls and text chat...

INTRODUCTION: Fifteen states participating in the Opioid Use Disorder, Maternal Outcomes, and Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome Initiative Learning Community (OMNI LC) developed action plan goals and activities to address the rise in opioid use disorder (OUD) among birthing persons. In a separate initiative, Perinatal Quality Collaboratives (PQCs) from 12 states participating in Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-supported activities hosted trainings to improve the provision of OUD services and implement protocols for screening and treatment in delivery facilities...

OBJECTIVE: To describe the experiences of perinatal Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color (BIPOC) women in healthcare interactions. METHODS: We conducted eight virtual focus groups with perinatal BIPOC women across the USA from November 2021 to March 2022. A semi-structured interview protocol was used, and focus groups were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim. Our team used reflexive thematic analysis to analyze the qualitative data and describe our findings...

Fetal neurology is a rapidly evolving and expanding field. Discussions about diagnosis, prognosis, treatment options, and goals of care often begin in the antenatal period. However, there are inherent challenges to fetal counseling of neurological diagnoses due to limitations of fetal imaging, prognostic uncertainty, and variability in neurodevelopmental outcomes. In the midst of uncertainty, families are challenged with preparing a care plan for their baby while simultaneously experiencing profound grief. The paradigms of perinatal palliative care can assist with the grieving process and help frame diagnostic testing and complex decision-making within the context of a family's spiritual, cultural, and social belief system...

BACKGROUND: Marshallese Pacific Islanders residing in the United States have higher rates of adverse perinatal outcomes than the general population and experience numerous barriers to prenatal care. CenteringPregnancy is a group prenatal care model which occurs in the patient's community. CenteringPregnancy, when applied to the Marshallese population, presents a potentially highly successful group-based intervention that can mitigate adverse perinatal outcomes among Marshallese Pacific Islanders...

BACKGROUND: Women Veterans are the fastest-growing segment of Veterans Health Administration (VA) users. The VA has invested heavily in delivering care for women Veterans that is effective, comprehensive, and gender-tailored. However, gender disparities persist in cardiovascular (CV) and diabetes risk factor control, and the rate of perinatal depression among women Veterans is higher than that among civilian women. Challenges such as distance, rurality, negative perception of VA, discrimination (e...

OBJECTIVE: This report introduces the Perinatal Early Assessment and Communication system for Emergencies (PEACE), a dedicated internet-based system for sharing maternal and newborn health information during large-scale disaster. METHODS: PEACE was developed by the Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology (JSOG) to enable internet-based sharing of maternal and newborn support information between facilities and rescue teams in disaster areas. PEACE input rates during prefecture-scale disasters and in disaster drills were surveyed for two facility categories: centers for perinatal medical care (CPMs) and combined clinics + regional general hospitals...

Objective: To observe the clinical outcomes of continued pregnancy in pregnant women with cesarean scar pregnancy (CSP). Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on the pregnancy outcomes of 55 pregnant women who were diagnosed with CSP at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University during the first trimester of pregnancy from August 1st, 2018 to October 31st, 2021 and strongly requested to continue the pregnancy. Results: Of the 55 pregnant women, 15 terminated the pregnancy in the first trimester, 1 underwent hysterotomy at 23 weeks of gestation due to cervical dilation, and 39 (71%, 39/55) continued pregnancy to the third trimester achieving live births via cesarean section...

OBJECTIVE: We sought to identify associations between prenatal care coordination (PNC) and outcomes in hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS). STUDY DESIGN: We hypothesized that suboptimal PNC is associated with worse pre-operative status. HLHS patients from 2016 through 2019 were identified using a multicenter registry. Optimal PNC was defined as (1) a completed interdisciplinary conference and (2) closed-loop communication with the obstetric team. Associations between PNC and outcomes were identified...

The number of individuals choosing to give birth in a freestanding birth center has doubled since 2004. As many as half of all pregnant persons planning for a birth center birth ultimately develop medical complications and are unable to give birth outside of the hospital. Integrating birth centers into their regional perinatal health care system optimizes outcomes by establishing predetermined pathways for antepartum and intrapartum transfers of care and facilitates ongoing communication and cooperation among clinicians...

BACKGROUND: Developments and evolutions in the information and communication technology sector have provided a solid foundation for the emergence of mobile health (mHealth) in recent years. The cornerstone to management of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is the self-management of glycemic indices, dietary intake, and lifestyle adaptations. Given this, it is readily adaptable to incorporation of remote monitoring strategies involving mHealth solutions. OBJECTIVE: We sought to examine and assess the available smartphone apps which enable self-monitoring and remote surveillance of GDM with a particular emphasis on the generation of individualized patient feedback...

Objective : To examine factors associated with birth-related post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among women who had preterm birth in their last pregnancy in Turkey. Methods : 304 women were asked to report sociodemographic factors, perinatal factors, birth-related factors, preterm birth/premature infant characteristics, and social support factors and PTSD symptoms. Data were collected using online surveys between November 2020 and February 2021. Hierarchical multiple linear regression was used. Results : The prevalence of birth-related PTSD symptoms following preterm birth was 71...

OBJECTIVE: To synthesize the current body of evidence regarding the perinatal experiences of Black women. DATA SOURCES: The databases PubMed, the Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), and Scopus were searched with the search terms "African American" (in PubMed), "Black" (in Scopus), or "Black" OR "African American" (in CINAHL) AND "pregnancy" AND "experiences." STUDY SELECTION: Searches yielded 266 articles published between January 2015 and May 2021...

OBJECTIVES: Long-standing racial disparities, particularly between White and Black women, in maternal and birth outcomes necessitate an examination of the factors influencing these disparities. This study aimed to understand the experiences of women of color as they relate to pregnancy and/or birth complications to inform policy and strategy to decrease racial and ethnic health disparities. METHODS: Six focus groups were conducted with women ( n  = 31) who were identified as a woman of color, were 18 years or older, self-identified as having experienced pregnancy or birth complications after 2016, and who spoke English...

OBJECTIVE: Women who are deaf experience higher rates of reproductive healthcare barriers and adverse birth outcomes compared with their peers who can hear. This study explores the pregnancy experiences of women who are deaf to better understand their barriers to and facilitators of optimal pregnancy-related health care. DESIGN: Qualitative study using thematic analysis. SETTING: Semi-structured, individual, remote or in-person interviews conducted in the USA...

PURPOSE: To describe the epidemiology of cerebral palsy (CP) among children in Gorkha, Nepal. METHODS: We established the first population-based register of children with CP aged <18 y in Gorkha, Nepal (i.e., Nepal CP Register). Children with suspected CP underwent detailed neurodevelopmental assessment by a multidisciplinary assessment team. Socio-demographic, etiology, motor severity, rehabilitation, and educational status were documented. RESULTS: Between January and October 2018, 182 children with confirmed CP were registered (mean (standard deviation (SD)) age: 10 years 1 months (4 years 10 months), 37...

BACKGROUND: Tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) in combination with other antiretroviral (ARV) drugs has been in clinical use for HIV treatment since its approval in 2001. Although the effectiveness of TDF in preventing perinatal HIV infection is well established, information about renal safety during pregnancy is still limited. TRIAL DESIGN: The IMPAACT PROMISE study was an open-label, strategy trial that randomized pregnant women to one of three arms: TDF based antiretroviral therapy (ART), zidovudine (ZDV) based ART, and ZDV alone (standard of care at start of enrollment)...

BACKGROUND: Perinatal depression (PD) affects 10-20% of childbearing women. Telehealth is increasingly utilized for mental health services to increase access to care and overcome COVID-19 pandemic barriers. Women's perspectives on telehealth services for PD is unknown, however. This study's primary objective was to obtain the perspectives of women who participated in an 8-week group videoconference intervention for PD symptoms, including how technology impacted their experience. METHODS: We utilized theoretical sampling and included perinatal women who had completed the 8-week mindfulness-based cognitive-behavioral intervention group...