Postpartum Primary Care Engagement and Acute Care Use

Was a behavioral science–informed intervention that increased postpartum primary care engagement associated with acute care use?In this nonprespecified secondary analysis of a randomized clinical trial with 353 postpartum patients, a bundled intervention that included default primary care practitioner visit scheduling and tailored messages was not associated with reduced overall acute care use. However, it was associated with reduced acute care use for treatable concerns typically managed by a primary care practitioner by 10 percentage points and with a reduced number of visits for these concerns by 0.3 visits within 12 months post partum.This study suggests that a bundled intervention encouraging postpartum primary care engagement could reduce postpartum acute care use for primary care treatable concerns.

Corresponding Author: Mark A. Clapp, MD, MPH, Massachusetts General Hospital, 45 Fruit St, Boston, MA 02115 (mark.clapp@mgh.harvard.edu).

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