Maternal and child health journal
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Matern Child Health J · Jan 2019
Best Practices for the Design, Implementation and Evaluation of Prenatal Health Programs.
Introduction Prenatal health programs provide health education, reproductive care and related services to women. Programs may be administered individually or collaboratively by agencies including public health units, hospitals, health clinics, community and non-governmental organizations. Prenatal health disparities among populations at-risk may be reduced through the provision of accessible health education, services and resources to help women mitigate modifiable risks to pregnancy. ⋯ Discussion A best practices model is proposed describing recommendations as follows: prenatal health programs should be grounded in a theoretical approach, fundamentally woman-centered and designed to address interacting prenatal health determinants across the lifespan. Accessible and inclusive prenatal health care can be achieved through provider training and community stakeholder collaborations. Identification of best practices for prenatal health program design, implementation and evaluation ensures that service standards are harmonized across communities, thereby optimizing maternal and child health.