Obstetrical and Neonatal Care Coordination Related to Infectious Diseases in Pregnancy
Report of Workgroup Findings

On January 22-23, 2018, TCHMB hosted a conference on obstetrical and neonatal care coordination of infectious diseases during pregnancy. Using the recent Zika experience as an example, this event provided a forum for key local, state, and national experts to discuss how coordination of care for pregnant women and babies in response to established and emerging infectious diseases could be improved.

Workgroups were convened to make recommendations and create a generalized guide for improving maternal and neonatal care coordination with respect to established and emerging infectious diseases. Three workgroups were assigned a specific focus along the perinatal timeline, from preconception through postpartum and inter-conception periods. All groups were tasked with identifying barriers to coordination and proposing a new, feasible model of care coordination based upon lessons learned from previous models of care. Workgroups consisted of 20 - 27 participants, and included experts in the fields of medicine, nursing, social services, public health, academia, and community health.

This brief report summarizes the recommendations of the workgroups.