Randomized Control Trial of Postpartum Visits at Two or Six Weeks to Evaluate Clinic Attendance and Emergency Department Usage

Postpartum care is an integral component to completing the maternal peripartum experience and transitioning the patient to well-women care. The American Congress of Obstetrics and Gynecology has recently highlighted the importance of this "fourth stage" of pregnancy suggesting earlier and more comprehensive visits compared to the standard 6-week postpartum visit. Specifically they describe that "all women should ideally have contact with a maternal care provider within the first three weeks postpartum" however this is largely derived from expect opinion and retrospective data. The current rate of postpartum visit attendance is as low as 66%, especially in women with scant prenatal care. In the investigators government-funded clinic, the postpartum clinic attendance in 2017 was 69% and many of the patients have co-morbidities, notably a 25% rate of psychiatric illness. Additionally, in this population, the investigators have identified a high rate of Emergency Department (ED) usage (8.7%) within 30 days of delivery suggesting that perhaps an earlier routine visit is ideal and can prevent the use of the ED. The aim therefore is to evaluate the utility of an early postpartum visit at two weeks in addition to a standard six-week visit with a randomized control trial.