baby2home (b2h) mobile health application

Conditions: COVID-19 Pandemic; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; Perinatal Depression; Mental Health Wellness; Post Partum Depression

Summary: the covid-19 pandemic has transformed healthcare delivery; arguably, the fields of obstetrics and pediatrics have experienced some of the greatest changes as they have transitioned away from their role as a medical home and into more of an urgent care model of care. baby2home is a digital health intervention designed to bridge the resultant gaps in obstetrics and pediatrics healthcare services for new families over the first year of life. this randomized controlled trial will evaluate whether, compared to usual care, baby2home 1) improves maternal, paternal, and infant health service utilization outcomes over the first year postpartum, 2) improves maternal and paternal patient reported outcomes, and 3) reduces racial/ethnic and income-based disparities in preventive health services utilization and parental patient reported outcomes.

the transition to new parenthood is marked by dramatic changes in social roles and responsibilities. to support new parents, obstetric and pediatric healthcare surrounding this transition is designed with a supportive focus to facilitate new parents' navigation of the attendant life changes. the covid-19 pandemic has altered healthcare delivery in ways that have limited these supportive obstetrics and pediatric services provided at the beginning of new parenthood. consequently, aspects of preventative healthcare, such as monitoring for symptoms of postpartum depression, discussing optimal birth control options, educating parents on recommended adult and pediatric vaccinations, and providing anticipatory guidance on infant wellness, are less robust. in addition, without professional guidance and support, outcomes of foundational importance to new parents, such as perceived stress, depressive and anxiety symptoms, or parenting and breast-feeding self-efficacy, are worse. moreover, the covid-19 pandemic has underscored the impact of the social determinants of health on new family wellness, with racial/ethnic minority and low-income families being differentially impacted by covid-19 pandemic driven healthcare delivery changes. recognizing the potential for longitudinal changes in healthcare delivery engendered by the covid-19 pandemic, a scalable, patient-centered, equity-focused intervention designed to bridge gaps in healthcare services around the transition to new parenthood is needed. "bridging gaps in healthcare delivery to covid-19 for parent and infants from birth through the first year of life" aims to evaluate baby2home (b2h) a patient-informed digital healthcare intervention that s is specifically responsive to the covid-19 pandemic's impact on new families, with a focus on health equity for racial/ethnic minority and low-income families. b2h builds upon previous digital health successes while incorporating the evidence-based collaborative care model for mental health support. b2h is designed to mitigate the adverse effects of healthcare delivery changes in response to the covid-19 pandemic and to improve health for mothers, fathers, and infants over the first year of life. developed from feedback given by new parents who delivered during the covid-19 pandemic, b2h provides 1) parental education about their own physical and mental health, 2) infant wellness resources and tracking of recommended healthcare services, 3) parental mental health screening and support, and 4) systematic case review to optimize the health of new families. the investigators will test the efficacy of b2h via a randomized control trial. in total, 640 diverse families will be randomly to either usual care or b2h intervention arm to evaluate whether, compared to usual care, b2h health services utilization and patient reported outcomes of foundational important to new families. addition, the investigators will evaluate the impact of b2h on racial/ethnic and income-based disparities observed in both services utilization and patient reported outcomes.

Eligibility criteria:
inclusion criteria: * delivery at prentice women's hospital or women and infants hospital of rhode island * viable term infant (≥ 37 weeks) * first live born child * english speaking * age 18 years old or greater * access to a smartphone * access to a working email address exclusion criteria: * no smartphone access * infant death * infant requires nicu admission * known severe mental illness of either parent (e.g., bipolar disorder, schizophrenia) * sars-cov-2 infection without clinical clearance * history of ipv (intimate partner violence) with current partner (would exclude partner) * concurrent enrollment in studies that may affect the outcome of the trial (or vice versa)