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Evaluating the Impact of Telehealth Prenatal Care at a Federally Qualified Health Center

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: INTRODUCTION: During the COVID-19 pandemic, clinicians had to reimagine perinatal care. Mary's Center, a federally qualified health center, built an innovative telehealth group prenatal care (T-GPNC) program to ensure equitable and safe access to health care. T-GPNC includes an individual telehealth assessment and group education. We conducted a program evaluation to determine the adequacy of prenatal care for T-GPNC clients compared with individual prenatal care (IPC) clients and to describe client satisfaction with T-GPNC. METHODS: This mixed-methods study included a retrospective chart review of electronic health records of Spanish-speaking midwifery clients at Mary's Center between July 1, 2021, and August 31, 2023, and client satisfaction surveys for T-GPNC. The T-GPNC intervention was offered only to Spanish-speaking clients in this timeframe. Our main outcome of interest was the adequacy of prenatal care, measured by generating an Adequacy of Prenatal Care Utilization Index. We conducted a thematic analysis of the surveys that included open-ended and categorical questions. RESULTS: (2) = 45; P < .001). Among T-GPNC clients who completed the satisfaction survey (n = 47; 33% response rate), they reported a high level of satisfaction (mean [SD] 4.85 out of 5 [0.63]). Qualitative themes included gaining knowledge, shared experiences, and systems-level support. DISCUSSION: T-GPNC provided critical support to Spanish-speaking clients during the COVID-19 pandemic, producing higher rates of adequate prenatal care for T-GPNC clients than for those receiving IPC and resulting in highly satisfied T‑GPNC clients. These statistically significant and clinically meaningful results indicate the value added by implementing T-GPNC.

Source: Journal of Midwifery & Women s Health

DOI: 10.1111/jmwh.70107

Authors: Catherine Daily, Ashley Gresh, Elizabeth R. Hamilton, Nancy A. Crowell, Germán Gustavo Alva Martinez, Christina X. Marea