Screening for diabetes in pregnancy in a regional area with a high Māori population

To identify and document factors associated with screening for diabetes in pregnancy in a regional area with a high Māori population in New Zealand.

An audit was undertaken of routine hospital data collected from all 656 women who gave birth, between June and December in 2013 and 2014, in two Mid-North Island hospitals in the Bay of Plenty region.

Of the 656 woman who gave birth during these periods, only 416 (63%) were screened for diabetes in pregnancy, including 390 (60%) for gestational diabetes mellitus later in pregnancy. After controlling for age, screening was less common in Māori (56%) compared with European women (76%). After adjusting for ethnicity, women aged 35-40 years were more likely to be screened compared with women aged 25-29 years (77% versus 61%; p=0.02). Screening was associated with longer hospital stays following birth, with screened women more likely to stay >5 days than <1 day, compared with unscreened women (84% versus 56%; p<0.0001). Screening was significantly higher in 2014 than 2013 (68% versus 58%; p=0.008).

Greater effort is required to increase screening, especially for Māori women who have increased risk of type 2 diabetes and gestational diabetes mellitus and of poorer outcomes.