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Do Home Visiting Services Received During Pregnancy Improve Birth Outcomes? Findings from Virginia PRAMS 2007–2008
Author(s) -
Shah Monisha K.,
Austin Kristin R.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
public health nursing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.471
H-Index - 55
eISSN - 1525-1446
pISSN - 0737-1209
DOI - 10.1111/phn.12103
Subject(s) - breastfeeding , medicine , pregnancy , low birth weight , live birth , demography , public health , logistic regression , birth weight , family medicine , environmental health , nursing , pediatrics , genetics , sociology , biology
Objectives Reducing poor birth outcomes are national and state priorities. At the national level participation in home visiting services has gained momentum with the recent appropriation of federal funds for states to implement evidence‐based maternal and child health home visiting programs. The effects of having a home visit are unknown at the state level. Design and Sample Using cross‐sectional data from 2007 to 2008 Virginia Pregnancy Risk Assessment and Monitoring System ( PRAMS ), maternal and infant outcomes were examined. Women who had a home visit during pregnancy were assigned into the home visiting ( HV ) participation group and those who did not were assigned to the HV Comparison group and used for the analysis. Measures Bivariate analyses, Rao‐Scott chi square tests, and multivariate logistic regression measured and quantified the association between HV participation and outcomes. Results The HV Participation group were 87.5% less likely to have a low birth weight infant (0.13, 95% CI : 0.020, 0.78), 4.5 times more likely to initiate breastfeeding ( aOR : 4.5, 95% CI : 1.05, 19.54), and 39 times more likely to use contraceptives postpartum ( aOR : 38.55, 95% CI : 3.14, 473.21). Conclusions Receiving home visiting services during pregnancy increased breastfeeding initiation and postpartum contraceptive use while reducing the risk of low birth weight.