Abstract
Problem Identification
This project addresses preterm birth (PTB) in pregnant Black women in Contra Costa County (CCC). This population experiences major health disparities in PTB outcomes and maternal health outcomes in general. PTB is more prominent among low-income or disadvantaged communities and has long-term health, social, and economic consequences.
Analysis
The Social-Ecological Model is used to identify and analyze risk factors for PTB at the intrapersonal, interpersonal, community, and societal levels. This includes lack of knowledge of prenatal care, quality of patient-provider relationships, inadequate transportation, and socioeconomic inequalities.
Intervention Proposal
Using the Health Belief Model, Flourish to Full-Term (F2F) proposes a three-strategy intervention to address determinants of PTB. A mobile app used for health communication will encourage initiation and increase knowledge of early prenatal care. Prenatal care provider trainings use health education for better patient-provider relationships. The health service strategy provides transportation support to increase accessibility to appointments.
Implementation and Evaluation
F2F will be piloted in four Contra Costa Health clinics and will partner with other organizations. The health educator, training facilitator, and technology specialists will track routine data for their primary strategy. The program evaluator will manage reports and conduct the final evaluation. Participants, staff, and partners have opportunities to provide verbal or written feedback. In this community-based setting, a quasi-experimental research design will be used to compare a control group to an experimental group. The control group is pregnant Black women from Alameda County. Outcomes for both groups will be assessed with a post-test and data collected by the California Department of Public Health.