Trends in maternal and child health care: implications for research and issues for social work practice

Trends are reviewed in four areas of maternal and child health care: (1) prenatal care; (2) infant mortality; (3) teenage pregnancy; and (4) HIV infected mothers and infants. The purpose of this review is to identify major trends in these programmatic areas, key indicators of physical-social health risk and survival, and central issues relevant to research and social work practice. Attention is directed to the status of research, and the usefulness of existing data sets available to researchers in the four programmatic areas of maternal and child health care under review. Emphasis is given to the importance of the integration of theory, research findings, and practice.