Interconception Care for Adolescent Women During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Interconception care (ICC) is a means of improving health outcomes for women and children by mitigating maternal risks between pregnancies. Within a pediatric medical home ICC is reliant on adherence to well-child visits (WCVs). We hypothesized that a pediatric-based ICC model would remain successful in providing access to services for adolescent women for those seen during the COVID19 pandemic. The objective of this study was to determine if the COVID19 pandemic influenced LARC use and repeat pregnancy for those seen for ICC in a dyadic pediatric medical home. METHODS: The pre-COVID cohort was comprised of adolescent women seen for ICC from September 2018-October 2019. The COVID cohort was comprised of adolescent women seen for ICC from March 2020-March 2021. The two cohorts were compared across multiple characteristics including sociodemographic factors, age, education, number of visits, contraceptive choice and repeat pregnancy during the study interval. RESULTS: The COVID cohort were significantly more likely to be primiparous, seen with a younger infant, and attend fewer visits than the pre-COVID cohort. The COVID cohort were equally likely to initiate long-acting reversible contraception but less likely to experience a repeat pregnancy. CONCLUSIONS: The COVID19 pandemic limited access to routine healthcare and likely impacted access to ICC for many women. ICC provided during WCVs allowed access to care even amid the restrictions of the COVID19 pandemic. Both effective contraception and decreased repeat pregnancy were maintained, highlighting the effectiveness of this approach for ICC within a dyadic pediatric medical home.

SARS-CoV-2 infection in children evaluated in an ambulatory setting during Delta and Omicron time periods.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants and re-emergence of other respiratory viruses highlight the need to understand the presentation of and factors associated with SARS-CoV-2 in pediatric populations over time. The objective of this study was to evaluate the sociodemographic characteristics, symptoms, and epidemiological risk factors associated with ambulatory SARS-CoV-2 infection in children and determine if factors differ by variant type. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of outpatient children undergoing SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction testing between November 2020 and January 2022. Test-positive were compared with test-negative children to evaluate symptoms, exposure risk, demographics, and comparisons between Omicron, Delta, and pre-Delta time periods. Among 2264 encounters, 361 (15.9%) were positive for SARS-CoV-2. The cohort was predominantly Hispanic (51%), 5-11 years (44%), and 53% male; 5% had received two coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine doses. Factors associated with a positive test include loss of taste/smell (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 6.71, [95% confidence interval, CI: 2.99-15.08]), new cough (aOR: 2.38, [95% CI: 1.69-3.36]), headache (aOR: 1.90, [95% CI: 1.28-2.81), fever (aOR: 1.83, [95% CI: 1.29-2.60]), contact with a positive case (aOR: 5.12, [95% CI: 3.75-6.97]), or household contact (aOR: 2.66, [95% CI: 1.96-3.62]). Among positive children, loss of taste/smell was more predominant during the Delta versus Omicron and pre-Delta periods (12% vs. 2% and 3%, respectively, p = 0.0017), cough predominated during Delta/Omicron periods more than the pre-Delta period (69% and 65% vs. 41%, p = 0.0002), and there were more asymptomatic children in the pre-Delta period (30% vs. 18% and 10%, p = 0.0023). These findings demonstrate that the presentation of COVID-19 in children and most susceptible age groups has changed over time.

Connecting during COVID: The application of teleservices in two integrated perinatal settings.

Integrated perinatal behavioral healthcare provides opportunities to support women and their babies as part of their primary care medical home. The COVID-19 pandemic required significant changes to be made to medical practices to enhance safety and reduce risk, particularly for vulnerable populations, including pregnant women. Previously established modes of mental health service delivery in the HEART program, an integrated behavioral health program embedded in a primary care clinic for adolescent mothers and their babies, and the PROMISE Clinic, an integrated obstetric behavioral health program that serves pregnant women, quickly pivoted to telehealth services because of the pandemic. HEART serves a racially and ethnically diverse patient population, with over 85% of patients publicly insured. The PROMISE Clinic serves a socioeconomically, racially, and ethnically diverse patient population. Behavioral health clinicians implemented a variety of technology-based services including telephone interventions and support, virtual visits using iPads during medical visits, and video visits that patients accessed from their homes. In HEART, behavioral health visits continued at pre-COVID rates during telehealth adaptations. In the PROMISE clinic, the number of perinatal women seen doubled, the total number of patient contacts tripled, and the missed appointment rate significantly decreased during COVID. In the PROMISE clinic, significantly more White and Hispanic perinatal women were seen during COVID and telehealth adaptations, while significantly fewer Black perinatal women were seen during this period. Further research is indicated to examine patient attitudes towards telehealth services, barriers to treatment for Black women, and outcome data.

El cuidado integrado de salud perinatal y del comportamiento ofrece oportunidades para apoyar a las mujeres y sus bebés como parte central del cuidado médico primario. La pandemia del COVID-19 requirió cambios significativos en las prácticas médicas para mejorar la seguridad y reducir el riesgo, particularmente para grupos de población vulnerables, incluyendo las mujeres embarazadas. Las maneras de ofrecer el servicio de salud mental previamente establecidas en la Clínica para Madres Jóvenes (YMC), una clínica de cuidado primario para madres adolescentes y sus bebés, y la Clínica PROMESA, un equipo integrado de salud obstétrica y del comportamiento, rápidamente cambiaron a los servicios de tele-salud a causa de la pandemia. El personal clínico de salud del comportamiento implementó una variedad de servicios con base en la tecnología, incluyendo intervenciones por teléfono, visitas virtuales llevadas a cabo durante visitas médicas, así como visitas grabadas en video a las que las pacientes tenían acceso desde sus casas. En YMC, las visitas de salud del comportamiento continuaron a los niveles de pre-COVID durante las adaptaciones a la tele-salud. En la Clínica PROMESA, significativamente más mujeres blancas e hispanas perinatales fueron vistas durante las adaptaciones de tele-salud, mientras que significativamente menos mujeres negras perinatales fueron vistas durante este período. Se indica una mayor investigación para examinar las actitudes de las pacientes hacia los servicios de tele-salud, las barreras al tratamiento de mujeres negras y los datos de resultados.

Les soins de santé périnatale intégrés offrent des occasions de soutenir les femmes et leurs bébés dans le contexte de leurs services de soin médical à domicile. La pandémie COVID-19 a exigé des changements importants pour les pratiques médicales afin de renforcer la sécurité et de réduire les risques, particulièrement pour les populations vulnérables, y compris les femmes enceintes. Des modes déjà établis de service de santé mentale dans la Clinique des Jeunes Femmes (Young Mothers Clinic, soit YMC), une clinique de soins primaires pour les mères adolescentes et leurs bébés et la Clinique PROMISE, une équipe de santé obstétrique comportementale intégrée ont vite pivoté vers des services de télésanté à cause de la pandémie. Les cliniciens de santé du comportement ont mis en place une variété de services basés sur la technologie y compris des interventions par téléphone, des visites virtuelles faites durant des visites médicales et des visites par vidéo que les parents ont regardé depuis chez eux. Pour ce qui concerne la YMC les visites de santé comportementale ont continué à des taux pré-COVID durant les adaptations de télésanté. Pour ce qui concerne la clinique PROMISE le nombre de femmes périnatales vues a doublé, le nombre total de contacts aux patientes a triplé, et le taux de rendez-vous manqués a considérablement baissé durant le COVID. A la clinique PROMISE bien plus de femmes périnatales blanches et hispaniques ont été vues durant les adaptions de télésanté, alors que bien moins de femmes périnatales noirs ont été vues durant cette période. Nous indiquons des directions de recherches supplémentaires pour examiner les attitudes de la patiente envers les services de télésanté, les barrières au traitement des femmes noires et les données des résultats.