Prenatal care, or the medical care received by pregnant women before and during pregnancy, is associated with positive birth outcomes, particularly if prenatal care is started during the first trimester. Prenatal visits are not only important for the health of the infant, but also for the health of the mother. During prenatal visits, health care providers educate mothers on important issues that can affect the health of their fetus, such as diet and nutrition, exercise, immunizations, weight gain, and abstaining from drugs and alcohol. Women who begin prenatal care after the first trimester are at risk for poor pregnancy outcomes.
Adequate prenatal care means a prenatal visit with a health professional within the first trimester of pregnancy and additional visits throughout the pregnancy. Early access to prenatal care has helped to reduce maternal death, miscarriages, birth defects, and other infant health problems. However, in spite of Medicaid expansions, access to prenatal care is not universal, as some expectant mothers remain uninsured. Women of racial and ethnic minorities are less likely to have access to prenatal care than non-Hispanic white women. The disparity increases with lower socioeconomic factors.
Public health and maternal/child health officials can use this trend to measure access to prenatal care, plan programs that promote early prenatal care, and assess any potential barriers to care.
This indicator measures the share of mothers who gave birth in Walla Walla County who received prenatal care during the first trimester of their pregnancy. Washington State and the U.S. are offered as benchmarks.
