title: Does prenatal care benefit maternal health? A study of post-partum maternal care use.
abstract: Most studies on prenatal care focus on its effects on infant health, while studying less about the effects on maternal health. Using the Longitudinal Health Insurance claims data in Taiwan in a recursive bivariate probit model, this study examines the impact of adequate prenatal care on the probability of post-partum maternal hospitalization during the first 6 months after birth. The results show that adequate prenatal care significantly reduces the probability of post-partum maternal hospitalization among women who have had vaginal delivery by 43.8%. This finding suggests that the benefits of prenatal care may have been underestimated among women with vaginal delivery. Timely and adequate prenatal care not only creates a positive impact on infant health, but also yields significant benefits for post-partum maternal health. However, we do not find similar benefits of prenatal care for women undergoing a cesarean section.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Finance and Public Finance and Finance Research Center, National Taipei University, New Taipei City, Taiwan. Electronic address: tching@mail.ntpu.edu.tw.
authors.forename: Tsai-Ching
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Institute of Public Health, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei City, Taiwan. Electronic address: bradleycheng@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Bradley
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Finance, National Taipei University, New Taipei City, Taiwan. Electronic address: yunshan@mail.ntpu.edu.tw.
authors.forename: Yun-Shan
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.affiliation: Department of Economics and Public Finance and Finance Research Center, National Taipei University, New Taipei City, Taiwan. Electronic address: stan@mail.ntpu.edu.tw.
authors.forename: Chin-Shyan
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002585:Cesarean Section / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D036861:Delivery, Obstetric / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D000068097:Maternal Health; D008427:Maternal Health Services; D010359:Patient Readmission / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D049590:Postpartum Period; D011247:Pregnancy; D011295:Prenatal Care; D013624:Taiwan / Q000453:epidemiology
keywords: Maternal health; Post-partum; Prenatal care; Taiwan; Vaginal delivery