Scheduling the first prenatal visit: office-based delays.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the office-based component of delayed entry into prenatal care.


METHODS
Phone numbers for all obstetrics offices in a single state were obtained from a commercial list. A research assistant who posed as a newly pregnant, fully insured woman asked each clinic when she should come in for her first prenatal visit.


RESULTS
Information was provided by 239 of the 279 (86%) offices. The recommended appointment times ranged from immediately (4 weeks of gestation) to 10.6 weeks, which averaged 6.37 weeks. Twenty-five percent of clinics recommended a first appointment at >/=8 weeks. Scheduling calls were not a source of prenatal advice: <5% of clinics asked about smoking, alcohol, or medical condition; 88% of clinics did not mention vitamins.


CONCLUSIONS
Office-based delays in scheduling the first prenatal visit occur in a substantial proportion of clinics, even for fully insured women. There is a need for a standard source of advice in early pregnancy.
Nettleman
Mary D
MD
Department of Medicine, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48823, USA. mary.nettleman@ht.msu.edu
Brewer
Jennifer
J
Stafford
Misty
M
D001071:Appointments and Schedules; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D008487:Medical History Taking / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D009819:Office Visits / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D016544:Patient Simulation; D011247:Pregnancy; D011295:Prenatal Care; D014481:United States; D014815:Vitamins / Q000627:therapeutic use
D014815:Vitamins