Pregnancy and Parenting Support for Incarcerated Women: Lessons Learned

There are more than 200,000 incarcerated women in U.S. prisons and jails, and it is estimated that 6% to 10% are pregnant. Pregnant incarcerated women experience complex risks that can compromise their health and the health of their offspring.

Identify lessons learned from a community-university pilot study of a prison-based pregnancy and parenting support program.

A community-university-corrections partnership was formed to provide education and support to pregnant incarcerated women through a prison-based pilot program. Evaluation data assessed women's physical and mental health concerns and satisfaction with the program. Between October 2011 and December 2012, 48 women participated.

We learned that providing services for pregnant incarcerated women requires an effective partnership with the Department of Corrections, adaptations to traditional community-based participatory research (CBPR) approaches, and resources that support both direct service and ongoing evaluation.

Effective services for pregnant incarcerated women can be provided through a successful community- university-corrections partnership.