Smartphone-based prenatal education for parents with preterm birth risk factors

• Published in: Patient education and counseling Vol. 102; no. 4; pp. 701 - 708
• Main Authors: Olivia Kim, U., Barnekow, K., Ahamed, S.I., Dreier, S., Jones, C., Taylor, M., Hasan, Md.K., Basir, M.A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Ireland Elsevier B.V 01.04.2019
• Subjects: Adult; Female; High-risk pregnancy; Humans; Infant, Newborn; Medical complications of pregnancy; Mobile Applications; Pilot Projects; Pregnancy; Premature Birth - prevention & control; Premature infant; Prenatal care; Prenatal Care - methods; Prenatal Education - methods; Risk Factors; Smartphone; Medical complications of pregnancy; Premature infant; High-risk pregnancy; Prenatal care
• ISSN: 0738-3991; 1873-5134; 1873-5134
• DOI: 10.1016/j.pec.2018.10.024

•Half of all premature births in the United States have preterm birth associated risk factors.•Prematurity education is currently offered to parents upon hospitalization for preterm birth.•Lack of prematurity education before the birth hospitalization leaves parents unprepared.•Smartphone-based prenatal prematurity education benefited parents at-risk for preterm birth.•In the majority of participants, the smartphone-based prenatal prematurity education did not increase parental anxiety. To develop an educational mobile application (app) for expectant parents diagnosed with risk factors for premature birth. Parent and medical advisory panels delineated the vision for the app. The app helps prepare for preterm birth. For pilot testing, obstetricians offered the app between 18–22 weeks gestational age to English speaking parents with risk factors for preterm birth. After 4 weeks of use, each participant completed a questionnaire. The software tracked topics accessed and duration of use. For pilot testing, 31 participants were recruited and 28 completed the questionnaire. After app utilization, participants reported heightened awareness of preterm birth (93%), more discussion of pregnancy or prematurity issues with partner (86%), increased questions at clinic visits (43%), and increased anxiety (21%). Participants reported receiving more prematurity information from the app than from their healthcare providers. The 15 participants for whom tracking data was available accessed the app for an average of 8 h. Parents with increased risk for preterm birth may benefit from this mobile app educational program. If the pregnancy results in preterm birth hospitalization, parents would have built a foundation of knowledge to make informed medical care choices.