Adoption of virtual prenatal visits linked to recurrent virtual or forgone visits for postpartum care

Abstract

BackgroundTo investigate the association between prenatal and postpartum visits, with a specific focus on the modality of these visits, and to assess whether barriers to virtual visits experienced during the prenatal period are linked to types of postpartum visits. MethodsThe repeated cross-sectional study used the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System from 2020 through 2021. Women who had prenatal visits and who also reported their postpartum visits were included (n = 11,258). The outcome was the modality of postpartum visits, and the key independent variable was virtual prenatal visit experience. Multinomial logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the relationship of postpartum visits with virtual prenatal visit experience. ResultsAmong those who had virtual prenatal visits, about one-third used virtual visits again for postpartum care. Individuals who had virtual prenatal visits showed greater odds of utilizing virtual visits (OR 8.54, 95%CI 7.05–10.35, p=<0.001) or no office visits (OR 1.61, 95%CI 1.25–2.07, p=<0.001) compared to in-person visits during the postpartum period. Women who reported a lack of virtual appointment availability (OR 0.58, 95%CI 0.40–0.86, P = 0.006) or cellular data (OR 0.18, 95%CI 0.05–0.68, p = 0.012) in their prenatal care had lower odds of virtual postpartum visits. ConclusionsWhile virtual prenatal visits are linked to greater virtual visits for postpartum care, they are also associated with increased forgone care. The unavailability of virtual appointments and cellular data is a significant barrier to virtual visits. The findings provide practical implications for advancing equitable and sustainable care in a rapidly changing healthcare landscape.