Group prenatal care gives you the chance to learn about pregnancy and childbirth alongside other pregnant women. Our Nurse-Midwifery group prenatal care program:

• Teaches you more about pregnancy and childbirth than is possible in individual prenatal care.
• Answers your questions, including questions you didn’t know you had, through open discussion.
• Gives you a chance to build relationships with others at the same stage of pregnancy.
• Helps you to build confidence through your pregnancy.

What is group prenatal care?

You attend some pregnancy care visits with a group of others who have similar due dates. The format we use is adapted from a national model called Centering Pregnancy. You can expect:

• A nurse-midwife at each session.
• About eight women and many of their partners in each group.
• Prenatal care and a discussion/support circle at each visit.
• Private time with the nurse-midwife at each session for a belly check.
• Time to ask questions and express concerns.
• To sign a confidentiality agreement to protect participants’ privacy.

What are the benefits of group prenatal care?

National studies comparing traditional and group prenatal care, reviewed in 2014 by OHSU researchers, found that women in group prenatal care:

• Are more satisfied with care.
• Have more pregnancy and childbirth knowledge.
• Have lower rates of preterm birth.
• Have lower rates of cesarean sections and low-birth-weight babies.
• Have higher breastfeeding rates and tend to breastfeed for longer.
• Feel more confident about labor and delivery.

OHSU study

A 2016 study by OHSU researchers compared women in group prenatal care with those who received traditional prenatal care. It found that the women in group care were more likely to arrive at the hospital in active labor (the cervix dilated to 4 centimeters or more).

Previous studies have shown that women with low-risk pregnancies who are admitted to the hospital before active labor are at higher risk for a C-section. The OHSU researchers concluded that group prenatal care may increase:

• A woman’s confidence in handling early labor at home.
• A woman’s satisfaction with her childbirth experience.

How does group prenatal care work?

Group care schedule:

• At OHSU, you begin group sessions when you are between 20 and 22 weeks pregnant.
• You attend seven sessions, each lasting about two hours.
• Group care ends between 34 and 38 weeks of pregnancy.
• You attend individual prenatal appointments in the weeks before and after the group sessions.

Structure of each session:

• You check in and go to the meeting room; you don’t have to wait for an appointment.
• You weigh yourself, take your blood pressure and record your results.
• The nurse-midwife listens to your baby’s heart rate and measures your belly.

The discussion/support circle, led by the nurse-midwife, lasts about an hour. Topics include:

• Your baby’s development
• Nutrition, exercise and weight gain
• How to tell when you’re in active labor and should go to the hospital
• Coping with labor pain
• Delivery of your baby and placenta
• Breastfeeding
• Family planning in the weeks after birth
• Mood concerns, such as depression, after giving birth