Pregnancy intentions, long-acting contraceptive use, and rapid subsequent pregnancies among adolescent and adult first-time mothers.

Problem: Greater understanding is needed related to qualitatively assess pregnancy intentions and rapid subsequent pregnancies among adolescent and adult mothers.

Methods: Four-site prospective study of 227 adolescent and adult mothers. Data were analyzed to understand the relationship between pregnancy intentions, adolescent status, and use of long-acting contraceptives and rapid subsequent pregnancy.

What mothers don't know and doctors don't say: Detecting early developmental delays.

The present study examined the detection of early developmental delays of high-risk infants by first-time mothers in a community sample of families (N = 451). About half of the mothers were adolescents at time of childbirth, and two thirds reported household incomes below $20,000 annually. Children were assessed at 12 and 24 months of age on standardized measures of cognitive, language, adaptive, and socioemotional development.

The clinical content of preconception care: care of psychosocial stressors.

In the period before conceiving, many women are under considerable psychosocial stress, which may affect their ability to conceive and to carry a pregnancy successfully to term. Thus, health care providers who interact with women in the preconception and interconception period should ask their patients about possible psychosocial risks. It is no longer sufficient to wait until the woman mentions a problem or seeks advice; the provider must be proactive, because many women do not realize the potential impact of stressors on their pregnancy outcomes nor are they always aware that their provider is interested in their psychosocial as well as their physical health.

Accessibility of family planning services: impact of structural and organizational factors.

Objectives: This study sought to determine whether selected structural and organizational characteristics of publicly available family planning facilities are associated with greater availability.

Methods: A survey was sent to 726 publicly available family planning facilities in four states. These included local health departments, federally qualified health centers (FQHC), Planned Parenthood sites, hospital outpatient departments, and freestanding women's health centers.