Group prenatal care to support mood before and after birth
Advancing Insight into Maternal Social Support (AIMSS): Group Prenatal Care and Postpartum Mood
This project compares group prenatal care (CenteringPregnancy) with usual prenatal care to help pregnant people feel better during pregnancy and after their baby is born.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R15 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Meredith College NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Raleigh, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11221634 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You would join a CenteringPregnancy group where prenatal visits combine health checkups with peer support and education. Researchers will compare outcomes from people in these groups to those receiving standard one-on-one prenatal care. The team will track mood and mental health from pregnancy through the baby's first year and measure a range of emotional outcomes beyond just depression. The study aims to see whether social support that starts during pregnancy reduces postpartum mood problems and to identify which participants benefit most.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Pregnant people receiving prenatal care at participating clinics who can attend group visits, especially those concerned about mood during pregnancy and after birth.
Not a fit: People who are not pregnant, those unable to attend regular group prenatal sessions, or those needing immediate intensive psychiatric care are unlikely to benefit from this program.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this approach could lower rates of postpartum mood problems and improve maternal and infant wellbeing by making supportive prenatal care more widely available.
How similar studies have performed: CenteringPregnancy has been linked to better birth outcomes and some physical health benefits, but strong evidence for improving postpartum mental health is limited.
Where this research is happening
Raleigh, United States
- Meredith College — Raleigh, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Prevatt, Betty-Shannon — Meredith College
- Study coordinator: Prevatt, Betty-Shannon
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.