Lisa Hunter RN, BN & Melanie Newell RD, IBCLC
They say it takes a community to raise a child but how are we doing as a community and how do we raise a healthy child. It starts with supporting the growth in utero with a healthy pregnancy. We wanted to see what is taking place in terms of creating the space for a healthy pregnancy in our provinces. Lisa explored Alberta and Melanie Nova Scotia.
Provinces and regions each have their own programs, policies and resources to influence health. We will start by researching such resources at both the organizational and community levels in the province of Alberta.
At an organizational level, I looked towards programs developed and supported by Alberta Health Services (AHS). One great resource, that I myself used while working in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), is the “Healthy Parents Healthy Children” website and book developed by AHS. Not only do they provide information for new mothers and babies, but provide a whole section on prenatal care. This resource assists pregnant women in finding the appropriate healthcare provider for their needs, including midwives or obstetricians, and talks about proper prenatal care and check-ups. It discusses possible health issues such as gestational diabetes, high blood pressure during pregnancy, what a healthy weight gain is and identifies the signs and symptoms of preterm labor.
Alberta also has the “Alberta Healthy Living Program”, helping Albertans learn about the prevention and management of illness and disease. This program is not specific to prenatal care, but includes programs and courses on high blood pressure and cholesterol, diabetes education, proper nutrition, chronic pain and stress management, the benefits of exercise, sleep habits and many more! All of which have insignificant impact on a healthy pregnancy. These courses are offered throughout the province and in many different languages, assisting as many Albertans as possible.
Alberta also provides it’s communities with many prenatal resources. I chose to investigate programs within my residing city, Calgary, AB. The Calgary foothills area offers services through the Primary Care Network, located throughout and around the city. They offer classes on smoking cessation, group appointments with a dietician, and even classes on improving happiness. More specifically related to prenatal care, the “Best Beginnings” Calgary program is a wonderful resource for pregnant women, also offering many classes, but importantly identifies the risks and signs of preterm labor. Women who are fearful, classified as “high-risk” in pregnancy, or have experienced preterm labor before will be able to turn to this resource for guidance and assistance.
A couple other community resources provided in Alberta that I would like to identify are located in more rural settings. The city of Cochrane provides women and families with the “Cochrane Prenatal Health Group”, which provides a support group and education for new moms and moms-to-be. Further north and more rural is the “Central Alberta Pregnancy Health Centre”. This provides prenatal classes and education to women in cities and regions such as Olds and Rocky Mountain House, AB.
Alberta is rich with resources on health and well-being. When it comes to prenatal care specifically, all of these programs can assist in the health of pregnant women, and achieve healthier babies and better birth outcomes.
There are many things happening at the organizational level to create a positive outcome for pregnancy. The Nova Scotia government has many resources to start the process with links to local public health, doulas, midwives and family resource centres. There is information on healthy eating during pregnancy and how to maintain healthy relationships. There is also a link to the Reproductive Care Program of Nova Scotia (RCP). RCP supports the development of healthcare professionals by providing online learning modules such as hypertension in pregnancy. They have the clinical practice guidelines and share data from provincial information gathered. The data is shared through statistical reports such as perinatal health indicators. They also have many different forms and resources for healthcare providers like maternal assessment forms and the Rourke Baby Record.
The Nova Scotia Health Authority (NSHA) offers a webpage titled I am Pregnant with links to resources. Another organizational support through the NSHA and public health is the Enhanced Home Visiting. This program offers supports prenatal with one on one counselling to cover a variety of topics like healthy development, labor and delivery, healthy eating and many more. Parents in this program are connected with a community outreach worker who will meet with expectant mothers and tailor information sharing to individual needs. The outreach worker will connect individuals to local resources and refer to community partners. This support through the Enhanced Home Visiting Program is offered prenatally and is available for families to continue until their child turns three. In primary health care there is prenatal support through care offered by family practice nurses working collaboratively with nurse practitioners and physicians.
At the community level family resource centres offer prenatal classes, cooking programs, group support, educational sessions, healthy snacks at every program and are sites for local food banks. The prenatal classes are designed to meet the needs of the group and are offered over a 6 week period covering a variety of topics. The classes will have guest speakers that connect expectant parents to local health care providers, such as public health and midwives.
Municipalities are working to create edible landscapes and generate access to healthy foods. There are community gardens, fitness centres and various support groups.
It was great working with each other to compare our provincial resources. It was interesting to see the strong community focus in Alberta. It is apparent that supporting a healthy pregnancy is important for both provinces as there are many resources available and many programs created to grow a healthy child.
Resources
https://www.pregnancycare.ca/resources/
http://www.birthandbabies.com/best-beginning-program/
https://www.albertahealthservices.ca/info/page13984.aspx#details-panel13990
https://healthyparentshealthychildren.ca/
http://www.birthandbabies.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Cochrane-Prenatal-Health-B-2017.pdf
https://cfpcn.ca/
http://www.nshealth.ca/i-am-pregnant
https://novascotia.ca/dhw/healthy-development/pregnancy.asp
http://rcp.nshealth.ca/
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