Building Equitable Linkages with Interprofessional Education Valuing Everyone (BELIEVE): research protocol for a...

Area of Science:

• Maternal Health
• Health Disparities Research
• Medical Education Technology

Background:

• Severe maternal morbidity and mortality rates in the U.S. exceed those in other high-income nations.
• Black birthing individuals experience disproportionately higher rates of severe maternal morbidity and mortality.
• Collaborative, team-based approaches are crucial for addressing these disparities in maternity care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of an interprofessional education (IPE) maternity care training program.
• To determine if IPE training can reduce racial disparities in postpartum pain assessment and treatment.
• To assess the impact of virtual reality (VR) in interprofessional training for maternity care.

Main Methods:

• A multisite step-wedge cluster randomized trial involving four North Carolina maternity hospitals.
• Implementation of a 2-hour IPE training (30-min pre-work, 90-min VR session, 30-min post-work) for maternity care teams.
• Outcomes measured over 24 months, assessing the prevalence of severe postpartum pain among Black and white birthing individuals.

Main Results:

• The study is designed to measure the reduction in racial disparities in postpartum pain.
• Primary outcome is the difference in severe postpartum pain prevalence between Black and white individuals.
• Data collection and analysis will occur over six four-month study periods.

Conclusions:

• This project will assess the efficacy of VR-based interprofessional training in reducing clinical disparities.
• Findings will guide the development of future IPE programs for maternity care teams.
• The goal is to improve the quality of care and decrease disparities in maternal health outcomes.