WIP 11 - Maternal Health: The Missing Piece of the NICU Puzzle

Publication Number: WIP 11.7531

Kathryn Komro, Rush Medical College of Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, United States; Tricia J.. Johnson, RUSH University, Chicago, IL, United States; Cristina MA. Barkowski, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, United States; Jane Oh, Rush Medical College of Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, United States; Aloka L. Patel, Rush Medical College of Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, United States

Background: Mothers of very preterm infants (VPT; < 32 weeks birth gestational age (GA)) in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) have an increased prevalence of high-risk gestational conditions such as hypertension and diabetes compared to those whose infants are not in the NICU. Despite the elevated risk for these high-risk gestational conditions, mothers may neglect their own health during their infant’s prolonged NICU hospitalization and miss essential postpartum medical appointments. While there has been increasing recognition of the benefits of family-centered care (FCC) for NICU patients, FCC has not traditionally involved maternal postpartum medical care, even for mothers with high-risk conditions. Maternal health and well-being are integral to ensuring maternal presence and participation in the NICU, and there may be a role for the NICU to facilitate essential postpartum medical care.

Objective: 1) To evaluate completion of recommended maternal postpartum follow-up appointments among mothers of VPT infants in the NICU. 2) To examine whether sociodemographic characteristics are associated with appointment completion.

Design/Methods: This is a secondary analysis of data collected for 70 mothers who delivered a VPT infant at the study hospital between December 2020 and July 2024 and enrolled in the ongoing ReDiMOM randomized controlled trial (R01013969). The primary outcome is completion of one or more postpartum appointment(s) by 6 weeks postpartum. Mothers are classified as high-risk if diagnosed with gestational or preexisting diabetes, multiple pregnancy, pre-eclampsia, or hypertension. Data includes maternal postpartum appointment attendance, race and ethnicity (non-Hispanic Black, Hispanic, White and other racial groups), insurance type (public, commercial), and infant GA. Data analyses include frequency distributions and chi-square tests to identify differences in attendance based on race and ethnicity and insurance type and will be completed by December 2024. This study has received IRB approval.