Antenatal visits. A comparative study between integrated and shared antenatal care.

Area of Science:

• Obstetrics and Gynecology
• Maternal Health
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Antenatal care models significantly influence patient experience and resource utilization.
• Traditional shared care often involves numerous visits, potentially leading to inefficiencies.
• Integrated antenatal care models aim to streamline services and improve patient pathways.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the number of antenatal visits between integrated and traditional shared care models.
• To assess patient satisfaction with the number of antenatal visits in different care models.
• To inform policy regarding hospital visit frequency for optimal obstetric care.

Main Methods:

• Comparative study design involving 96 women in an integrated care group and 100 women in a traditional shared care group.
• Data collection focused on the total number of antenatal visits and visits to the hospital source of care.
• Patient satisfaction surveys were administered to both groups.

Main Results:

• Women receiving traditional shared care made more total antenatal visits and hospital visits per pregnancy.
• Most women in both groups were satisfied with their visit frequency.
• Some integrated care patients desired more early visits, while some traditional care patients felt they had too many hospital visits.

Conclusions:

• Integrated antenatal care can reduce overall visit numbers compared to traditional shared care.
• A policy limiting routine hospital visits to three, when appropriate, could enhance specialist focus on high-risk patients.
• Further research may explore optimal visit schedules within integrated models to address patient preferences.