Timing of Prenatal Care Initiation and Psychological Wellbeing in Black Women

• Published in: MCN, the American journal of maternal child nursing Vol. 45; no. 6; p. 344
• Main Authors: Wong, Ana C, Rengers, Brooke, Nowak, Alexandra L, Schoeppner, Samantha, Price, Mercedes, Zhang, Liying, Dailey, Rhonda K, Anderson, Cindy M, Misra, Dawn P, Giurgescu, Carmen
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.11.2020
• Subjects: Adult; Black or African American - ethnology; Black or African American - statistics & numerical data; Cross-Sectional Studies; Female; Humans; Patient Acceptance of Health Care - ethnology; Patient Acceptance of Health Care - psychology; Pregnancy; Pregnant Women - ethnology; Pregnant Women - psychology; Prenatal Care - methods; Prenatal Care - statistics & numerical data; Psychometrics - instrumentation; Psychometrics - methods; Surveys and Questionnaires; Time Factors
• ISSN: 1539-0683
• DOI: 10.1097/NMC.0000000000000661

The purpose of this study was to see if timing of prenatal care initiation was related to psychological wellbeing of Black women. Using a cross-sectional design, a sample of 197 pregnant Black women completed a self-reported survey between 8 weeks and less than 30 weeks gestation as part of the Biosocial Impact on Black Births study. The questions asked about the initiation of prenatal care, perceived stress, depressive symptoms, and psychological wellbeing. Multiple linear regression was used to examine if timing of prenatal care initiation was related to psychological variables. Sixty-three women (32%) reported they were not able to initiate their first prenatal care visit as early as they wanted due to various barriers. After adjusting for cofounders, not initiating prenatal care as early as women wanted predicted lower levels of psychological wellbeing. Perinatal nurses should assess psychological wellbeing in Black women throughout pregnancy; advocate for Black women who report high levels of stress, psychological distress, or depressive symptoms for further mental health evaluation by their health care provider; and provide resources and education (e.g., support groups, counseling) for these women.