scholarly journals African American Women’s Preparation for Childbirth From the Perspective of African American Health-Care Providers

2011 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-53 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine Abbyad ◽  
Trina Reed Robertson
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
African American ◽  
African American Women ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Self Awareness ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
American Women ◽  
American Health Care ◽  
Caucasian Women ◽  
Maternity Health

Preparation for birthing has focused primarily on Caucasian women. No studies have explored African American women’s birth preparation. From the perceptions of 12 African American maternity health-care providers, this study elicited perceptions of the ways in which pregnant African American women prepare for childbirth. Focus group participants answered seven semistructured questions. Four themes emerged: connecting with nurturers, traversing an unresponsive system, the need to be strong, and childbirth classes not a priority. Recommendations for nurses and childbirth educators include: (a) self-awareness of attitudes toward African Americans, (b) empowering of clients for birthing, (c) recognition of the role that pregnant women’s mothers play, (d) tailoring of childbirth classes for African American women, and (e) research on how racism influences pregnant African American women’s preparation for birthing.

Diabetes Self-Management Education and Self-Efficacy Among African American Women Living With Type 2 Diabetes in Rural Primary Care

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-16
Author(s):  
Cynthia Harrington ◽  
Heather D. Carter-Templeton ◽  
Susan J. Appel
Keyword(s):  
Type 2 Diabetes ◽  
African American ◽  
African American Women ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Self Management ◽  
Health Clinic ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
American Women

African American women suffer the highest prevalence of type 2 diabetes (T2D). Self-efficacy is important for optimal diabetes self-management (DSM). Purpose: To evaluate DSM by comparing pre- and postintervention responses to a diabetes self-efficacy scale. Design: Descriptive pilot study. Sample: Participants for this study were N = 15 African American women aged 25–65 years (M = 47.4 years) and recruited from a rural health clinic in the Southeastern United States, who received a 4-hr DSM class. Method: Data were collected using the Stanford Self-Efficacy for Diabetes (SED). Results: The increase in the pre- and posttest SED scores were statistically significant, (p < .001). Implications for Nursing: Health care providers should tailor a diabetes education program for these individuals living with T2D. Through a collaborative patient–provider relationship to care, individuals may ultimately experience increased self-efficacy leading to improved DSM.

Long-Term Breastfeeding in African American Mothers

2017 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 128-139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tyra Toston Gross ◽  
Marsha Davis ◽  
Alex K. Anderson ◽  
Jori Hall ◽  
Karen Hilyard
Keyword(s):  
African American ◽  
African American Women ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Breastfeeding Support ◽  
American Women

Background: According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 39.1% of African American infants are breastfed at 6 months. However, few studies have explored the breastfeeding experiences of African American women who successfully breastfeed to 6 months or longer durations. Research aim: The goal of this qualitative study was to explore the long-term breastfeeding experiences of low-income African American women using the positive deviance approach. Methods: African American women with breastfeeding experience were recruited through Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) breastfeeding peer counselors. Eligibility criteria included being age 18 or older, currently participating in WIC, and having breastfed one child for at least 6 months in the past 2 years. Semistructured, in-depth interviews were conducted with 11 participants. Interviews were audio-recorded and professionally transcribed. Transcripts were then analyzed for emerging themes using thematic analysis in NVivo software. Results: Participants had on average three children each, with an average length of breastfeeding of 10.5 months per child. Four main themes developed: (a) deciding to breastfeed, (b) initiating breastfeeding, (c) breastfeeding long-term, and (d) expanding breastfeeding support. Participants offered culturally tailored suggestions to improve breastfeeding support for other African American women: prenatal discussions of breastfeeding with health care providers, African American lactation support personnel and breastfeeding support groups, and African American breastfeeding promotion in print and digital media. Conclusion: Women who participated in this study breastfed for longer durations than the national average for African Americans. Findings can inform practice and research efforts to improve breastfeeding rates in this population using lessons learned from successful women.

Integrative Literature Review of Factors Related to Breastfeeding in African American Women: Evidence for a Potential Paradigm Shift

2017 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 435-447 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie DeVane-Johnson ◽  
Cheryl Woods-Giscombé ◽  
Suzanne Thoyre ◽  
Cathie Fogel ◽  
Ronald Williams
Keyword(s):  
African American ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Human Milk ◽  
African American Women ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Low Socioeconomic Status ◽  
Paradigm Shift ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
American Women ◽  
Milk Feeding

Background: Human milk has widespread health benefits for infants, mothers, and society. However, not all populations of women, particularly African American women, engage in human milk feeding at high rates. Research aim: The purpose of this integrative literature review is twofold: (a) to examine factors that influence low rates of human milk feeding among African American women and (b) to introduce a need for a methodological paradigm shift to develop culturally relevant and effective interventions. Methods: The authors searched four electronic social science databases for peer-reviewed journal articles pertaining to human milk among African American women published from 1990 to 2015. Both coauthors independently assessed these articles using thematic analysis and validation. The database search yielded 47 peer-reviewed articles. Results: Three main themes emerged explaining the human milk feeding disparity: (a) the social characteristics of women likely not to feed human milk (e.g., low socioeconomic status, single); (b) women’s perceptions of human milk feeding; and (c) the quality of human milk feeding information provided by health care providers (i.e., limited human milk information). Conclusion: Current literature does include sociohistorical factors that have shaped current norms. Adding sociohistorical frameworks, paying particular attention to the embodied experience of historical trauma, could lead to the development of new evidence-based, culturally sensitive interventions to enhance human milk feeding in the African American community.

Addressing Health Concerns of Pregnant African American Women Using the Lens of Complexity Theory

2014 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 258-264
Author(s):  
Traci Sims
Keyword(s):  
African American ◽  
African American Women ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
American Women ◽  
Science Theory ◽  
Health And Well Being

Pregnant African American women are at higher risk for multiple complex health issues, including depression, than their European American counterparts (Canady, Bullen, Holzman, Broman, & Tian, 2008; Martin et al, 2011; Mathews & MacDorman, 2007; Orr, Blazer, & James, 2006; Segre, Losch, & O’Hara, 2006). Various strategies must be used to address depression through preventive care and promotion of access to appropriate mental health services. Nurses and other health care providers need to examine the relationships between the multifactorial problems to improve the health and well-being of pregnant African American women and their unborn children. This article presents a case study demonstrating the use of complexity science theory to understand and prevent poor health outcomes for pregnant African American women with depression and their unborn children.

Delivered by Midwives

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jenny M. Luke
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Twentieth Century ◽  
African American ◽  
African American Women ◽  
Maternity Care ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Care Model ◽  
American Women ◽  
Childbirth Experience ◽  
New Perspective

Delivering babies was merely one aspect of the broad role of African American midwives in the twentieth-century South. Yet little has been written about the type of care they provided, or how midwifery and maternity care evolved under the increasing presence of local and federal health care structures. Using evidence from nursing, medical, and public health journals of the era; primary sources from state and county departments of health; and personal accounts from varied practitioners, Delivered by Midwives: African American Midwifery in the Twentieth-Century South provides a new perspective on the childbirth experience of African American women and their maternity care providers during the twentieth century. Moving beyond the usual racial dichotomy, the monograph exposes a more complex shift in childbirth culture to reveal the changing expectations and agency of African American women in their rejection of a two-tier maternity care system, and their demands to be part of an inclusive, desegregated society. This book identifies valuable aspects of a maternity care model that were discarded in the name of progress. Today concern about maternal mortality and persistent racial disparities have forced a reassessment of maternity care and elements of the long-abandoned care model are being reincorporated into modern practice, answering current health care dilemmas by heeding lessons from the past.

scholarly journals The Acceptability of Text Messaging to Help African American Women Manage Anxiety and Depression: Cross-Sectional Survey Study

10.2196/15801 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. e15801 ◽  
Author(s):  
Terika McCall ◽  
Todd A Schwartz ◽  
Saif Khairat
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
African American ◽  
Mental Health Care ◽  
African American Women ◽  
Text Messaging ◽  
Anxiety And Depression ◽  
American Women ◽  
To Receive ◽  
Insight Into

Background The rates of mental illness among African American women are comparable with the general population; however, they significantly underutilize mental health services compared with their white counterparts. Previous studies revealed that interventions delivered via text messaging are effective and can be used to increase access to services and resources. More insight into whether or not this modality is acceptable for use to deliver mental health care to help African American women manage anxiety and depression is needed. Objective This exploratory study aimed to gain insight into the acceptability of using text messaging to help African American women manage anxiety and depression. Methods A self-administered Web-based survey was launched in June 2018 and closed in August 2018. Eligible participants were African American women (18 years or older) who reside in the United States. Participants were recruited through convenience sampling (eg, email sent via listservs and social media posts). Respondents were provided an anonymous link to the questionnaire. The survey consisted of 53 questions on the following subjects: sociodemographic characteristics, attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help, mobile phone use, and acceptability of using a mobile phone to receive mental health care. Results The results of this exploratory study (N=101) showed that fewer than half of respondents endorsed the use of text messaging to communicate with a professional to receive help to manage anxiety (49/101, 48.5%) and depression (43/101, 42.6%). Approximately 51.4% (52/101) agreed that having the option to use text messaging to communicate with a professional if they are dealing with anxiety would be helpful. Similarly, 48.5% (49/101) agreed that having the option to use text messaging to communicate with a professional if they are dealing with depression would be helpful. Among participants who agreed that text messaging would be helpful, more than 80% noted being comfortable with its use to receive help for managing anxiety (approximately 86%, 45/52) and depression (approximately 82%, 40/49; highly significant positive association, all P<.001). More than 50% of respondents (56/101, 55.4%) indicated having concerns about using text messaging. No statistically significant associations were found between age and agreement with the use of text messaging to communicate with a professional to receive help for managing anxiety (P=.26) or depression (P=.27). Conclusions The use of text messaging was not highly endorsed by African American women as an acceptable mode of communication with a professional to help them manage anxiety or depression. Concerns around privacy, confidentiality, and the impersonal feel of communicating about sensitive issues via text messages must be addressed for this modality to be a viable option. The findings of this study demonstrated the need for further research into the use of mobile technology to provide this population with more accessible and convenient options for mental health care.

Your Diabetes

2018 ◽  
pp. 75-91
Author(s):  
Mari Armstrong-Hough
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Disease Progression ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Lifestyle Changes ◽  
Patient Relationship ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Course Of Disease ◽  
American Health Care ◽  
Low Expectations ◽  
Capacity For Change

This chapter uses interview data with American health care providers to examine clinicians’ strategies for negotiating with patients to elicit cooperation and participation in their own self-management. It argues that physicians in both countries switch between different models of the provider-patient relationship as they see fit to the situation. The American providers stressed that, ultimately, responsibility for managing the disease rested with the patient. However, they were markedly pessimistic about their patients’ capacity for change and likely course of disease progression. Providers’ low expectations and pessimism contributed to a preference for small, simple lifestyle changes in combination with medication rather than bold lifestyle change.

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