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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Erin Moix Grieb, MA, Clea Sarnquist, MPH, and Yvonne Maldonado, MD. Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University, Cypress Hall E-15, 550 Via Ortega, Stanford, CA 94305, 650-248-8487, emoixgrieb@yahoo.com

Background: The term "Asian/Pacific Islander" (API) is a U.S. census federal grouping and has traditionally been used to describe epidemiological data on Asian and Pacific Islanders. The aim of this study is to examine this ethnic classification in light of prenatal care to determine if it is too broad and the diversity of the group is lost.

Methods: Birth certificates from 2.6 million women in California from 2000-2004 were analyzed retrospectively to study the association of race and prenatal care. Subjects were divided into two groups: Asian and Pacific Islander and receipt of prenatal care was categorized using the Kotelchuck index. Univariate and multivariate analysis was done to determine differences between prenatal care among the two groups.

Results: 21% of the Pacific Islander women receive ‘no' or ‘inadequate' care compared to 9% of the Asian women (7% for White women). 65% of the Asian women received ‘adequate' or adequate plus' care compared to 56% of Pacific Island women (70% for White). The payer of prenatal care also varied with 74% of Asians having private insurance (53% for PIs) and 39% of Pacific Islanders having Medi-Cal insurance (21% for Asian women).

Conclusion: It is evident that the populations that make up the classification of “API” are very different. Women of Pacific Island descent are more likely to receive inadequate or no prenatal care than Asian women. This suggests that a new classification system be put in place to better address the group's diversity.

Learning Objectives: