Abstract
BackgroundDespite the provision of maternity leave offered to mothers, many American women fail to take leave.MethodsWe developed an evidence-based maternity leave educational tool for working women in California using participatory design. We tested its short-term efficacy with a randomized controlled trial of pregnant English-speakers (n=155).ResultsAmong intervention participants exposed to the tool, 65% reported that they learned something new; 38% were motivated to seek more information; and 49% said it helped them plan their maternity leave. Among participants who delivered at ≥ 37 weeks gestation and said the tool helped them plan their leave, 89% took more than one week of prenatal leave, a significantly higher proportion than among controls who did not receive the tool (64%, p=0.049). Other findings favored trial participants, but were not statistically significant in this small sample. More intervention participants took some prenatal leave (80%) vs. controls (74%, p=0.44). Among participants who had returned to work when surveyed (n=50), mean postnatal leave uptake was on average 1 week longer for intervention participants vs. controls (13.3 vs. 12.2 weeks, p=0.54).ConclusionsThe first-phase evaluation of this tool shows that it successfully informed women about maternity leave options, clarified complex regulations, encouraged women to seek further information and helped plan maternity leave. Compared to controls, trial participants who used the tool to plan their leave were far more likely to take prenatal leave close to term. Future evaluation of the tool when mediated by a health provider or employer is warranted.
Highlights
Research increasingly shows that mothers who take maternity leave can improve perinatal health outcomes for themselves and for their newborns
Among participants who delivered at 37 weeks gestation and said the tool helped them plan their leave, 89% took more than one week of prenatal leave, a significantly higher proportion than among controls who did not receive the tool (64%, p=0.049)
Future evaluation of the tool when mediated by a health provider or employer is warranted
Summary
Research increasingly shows that mothers who take maternity leave can improve perinatal health outcomes for themselves and for their newborns. [1,2,3,4,5,6] Maternity leave taken in the ninth month of pregnancy has been associated with a reduced risk of a primary cesarean section. Despite the importance of maternity leave, many American women fail to take adequate advantage of this option. [14] This is not surprising because the United States (US) is the only industrialized country that does not offer paid leave. Given the lack of a universal maternity leave entitlement and wide variability of state and employer provisions, many American mothers lack information and support to make maternity leave decisions. Despite the provision of maternity leave offered to mothers, many American women fail to take leave
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