Virtual Visits: Managing prenatal care with modern technology.

Area of Science:

• Obstetrics and Gynecology
• Digital Health
• Healthcare Innovation

Background:

• Prenatal care models are evolving to improve accessibility and patient experience.
• Low-risk pregnancies offer opportunities for innovative care delivery methods.
• Telehealth integration in healthcare is expanding, including maternal health services.

Purpose of the Study:

• To implement and evaluate a novel prenatal care model for low-risk pregnancies.
• This model intersperses in-person physician visits with nurse practitioner videoconference visits.
• To compare outcomes between a traditional and a virtual visit prenatal care track.

Main Methods:

• A Quality Improvement initiative compared a Traditional care track (N=941) with a Virtual Visit track (N=117).
• Virtual Visit patients received fewer in-person physician visits and incorporated videoconference consultations.
• Logistic regression and ANCOVA were used to analyze demographic and clinical outcomes.

Main Results:

• Virtual Visit enrollees were more likely to be partnered, have prior pregnancies, and not use government nutrition assistance.
• A higher percentage of Virtual Visit patients had preeclampsia, though this was based on a small number of cases.
• No significant differences were found in other pregnancy/birth outcomes or health system utilization between the groups.

Conclusions:

• The Virtual Visit prenatal care model is a safe alternative for low-risk pregnancies, showing no increased risk to mother or baby.
• This model may be particularly suitable for partnered, middle- to high-income mothers with existing children.
• Videoconference-based prenatal care offers a viable option for enhancing maternal healthcare delivery.