Centering Pregnancy and traditional prenatal care: A study of women's health practices

In response to the prevalence of preterm birth and low birth weight paired with no proven single mechanism to prevent preterm birth, it is recommended that prenatal care include multiple approaches: provide risk assessment, health promotion, and medical and psychosocial intervention. Preventive health behaviors are some of the most proven components of prenatal care. Sharon Rising has recently developed the Centering Pregnancy Model (CPM) of prenatal care that employs group support. Within a 2 hour appointment clinical assessment occurs is conducted followed by a 90 minute educational discussion in a group of women with similar gestational age. The CPM has been adopted in over fifty clinics nationwide. The effectiveness of the CPM has been studied using clinical outcomes and post-partum behavioral outcomes, but has yet to be evaluated on the basis of health practices during pregnancy.

This study will utilize a correlational, cross-sectional, two-group design in order to compare the health practices of pregnant women involved in Centering Pregnancy with those involved in traditional prenatal care. Lindgren's Health Practices Questionnaire-II will be employed to measure behaviors related to rest and exercise, prevention of illness and injury, nutritional/dietary intake, avoidance of harmful substances, obtaining healthcare, seeking information and knowledge acquisition regarding pregnancy and childbirth. Approximately 70 patients drawn from each group will participate in the study. Descriptive statistics and two different inferential analyses, multiple regression and multiple logistic regression, will be utilized in this study to determine if health behaviors differ between the types of prenatal care.