July 25, 2024 – Scheduling doctor appointments for patients who have recently given birth and sending them reminder messages could help to improve their transition to postpartum health care, according to a study led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health’s Jessica Cohen.
The study, published in JAMA Network Open, was featured in a July 16 STAT News article.
Many pregnant individuals are carefully monitored by doctors before giving birth, but then stop receiving care after delivery—a problem termed the “postpartum cliff”—even though they may have had serious conditions during pregnancy, such as gestational diabetes or preeclampsia, that warrant further monitoring.
“Throughout the postpartum year, how do we move toward better health and well-being? That requires that postpartum people get attention,” said Cohen, professor of global health and population. “Insurance coverage is a necessary condition, but there’s really nothing else that supports this transition after delivery away from your pregnancy care provider toward primary care.”
The researchers designed a strategy to help postpartum individuals transition to primary care, which involved scheduling physician appointments for patients by default and sending them reminder and educational messages. In a clinical trial, the researchers found that individuals who received the help had a significantly increased rate of visiting their physicians and receiving health screenings.
Read the study: Postpartum Primary Care Engagement Using Default Scheduling and Tailored Messaging
Read the STAT News article: Addressing the “postpartum cliff” may be as simple as sending a few text messages
Read a WBUR article: New mothers can ‘fall through the cracks’ in health care. Researchers suggest a different approach
Learn more
Opinion: Improving maternal health outcomes requires better support during postpartum year (Harvard Chan School news)
– Jay Lau
Photo: iStock/monkeybusinessimages