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Purpose Children of young parents are at elevated risk for child abuse and neglect due to myriad challenges. Despite the dual need for parenting support and mental health support, most literature and programs separate these and do not address maltreated parenting youths' intergenerational context. The current study explores parenting and mental health needs as intertwined, uplifting experiences of young adult mothers with child maltreatment histories, professionals serving them, and mothers' own caregivers. Method Through a community-engaged research process, this grounded theory study was co-conceptualized and conducted through a university-community-based organization partnership. We conducted in-depth interviews with 23 participants: nine young, maltreated mothers aged 18-25 (M = 20.9) years, 14 professionals and two caregivers. Data were collected in the community and analyzed using grounded theory methods. We transcribed each interview and analyzed the transcripts using a structured process of open, focus, axial, and selective/theoretical coding. Rigor was enhanced through several strategies including reflexivity and member checking. Results Grounded theory analysis produced a detailed model of the process of accessing and receiving mental health and parenting support among young, maltreated mothers, including (1) Reckoning with the Impact of Childhood and Adolescent Trauma on Mental Health and Parenting; (2) Reaching Out; (3) Receiving Parenting Support; (4) Receiving Mental Health Support; and (5) Seeking a Change. Conclusions Findings support a comprehensive approach for supporting young parents in improving the trajectories of their families through integrated approaches to parenting and mental health intervention., Author(s): Elizabeth M. Aparicio [sup.1] , Amara Channell Doig [sup.1] , Michelle Jasczynski [sup.1] , Jennifer L. Robinson [sup.1] , Maisha Huq [sup.1] , Jee Hun Yoo [sup.1] , Emily [...]

Homeless youth have disproportionately high rates of unintended pregnancy and STIs. Enhancing communication between sexual partners can improve sexual health outcomes, yet little is known about this topic among homeless youth; therefore, this study aimed to examine how homeless youth communicate with their partners about birth control. In-depth semi-structured interviews regarding intimate partner birth control communication were conducted with 10 homeless young women aged 14–22 years following their completion of a comprehensive sexual health program (Wahine Talk). We transcribed the interviews verbatim and used a structured, inductive analytic approach to identify themes. Analysis identified three themes: Getting the Conversation Started, Conversation Content, and Impact of Conversation. Birth control conversations were prompted by programme participation, birth control side effects, and family members' interest in homeless youth becoming pregnant. Barriers to communication included fear and mistimed conversations (e.g. during the initiation of sex). Homeless young people shared simultaneous desires to delay pregnancy and concerns about side effects of birth control use. Discussions about birth control with their partners may demonstrably improve homeless youth's intimate relationships and family planning efforts. Providers can support homeless young women by helping them plan conversation timing and addressing fear, including the risk of violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nearly half of female youth experiencing homelessness (YEH) become pregnant due to myriad individual, family, community, and structural factors. In response, our team developed and tested Wahine ("woman") Talk, a multilevel, trauma-informed sexual and reproductive health intervention created with and for female YEH aged 14 to 22. After Wahine Talk, youth were invited to participate in a participatory action PhotoVoice project regarding experiences of the program, waiting to start or expand their families, and homelessness. Photographs were taken and captioned by youth, and then further examined through Thematic Analysis. Final project themes include (a) Youth-Driven Birth Timing Decisions; (b) A Sense of Place: Finding Safe Spaces; and (c) Glimpsing Hope. Because YEH live under society's radar, it is critical to understand their experiences from their own perspectives to improve interventions at multiple levels. Implications for meeting the needs of YEH in the areas of reproductive justice, financial stability, and affordable housing are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To explore the practices, experiences, and needs of young mothers with a history of maltreatment who are introducing their children to complementary foods., Design and Methods: In-depth interviews (n = 9) were conducted with young mothers (19-23 yrs) who had childhood histories of abuse and neglect (maltreatment). Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using a five-step thematic analysis approach., Results: Thematic analysis resulted in three themes: (1) Practices and sources of information, (2) Providing the best, and (3) Feeding challenges. Participants' primary sources of nutrition information were family or foster parents and Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) educators. Participants expressed wanting to give their children healthy food and to change the cycle by not repeating some of their own childhood food experiences. Finally, participants sometimes struggled with food affordability., Conclusions: The study highlights the need for additional support for young maltreated mothers, including access to healthy foods and education about infant feeding., Practice Implications: Young maltreated mothers are in need of trauma-informed and strengths-based complementary feeding information and support with basic needs. Universal trauma-informed care has the potential to prevent re-traumatization and improve patient care and nutrition education., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Stark disparities exist in maternal and child outcomes and there is a need to provide timely and accurate health information., Objective: In this pilot study, we assessed the feasibility and acceptability of a health chatbot for new mothers of color., Methods: Rosie, a question-and-answer chatbot, was developed as a mobile app and is available to answer questions about pregnancy, parenting, and child development. From January 9, 2023, to February 9, 2023, participants were recruited using social media posts and through engagement with community organizations. Inclusion criteria included being aged ≥14 years, being a woman of color, and either being currently pregnant or having given birth within the past 6 months. Participants were randomly assigned to the Rosie treatment group (15/29, 52% received the Rosie app) or control group (14/29, 48% received a children's book each month) for 3 months. Those assigned to the treatment group could ask Rosie questions and receive an immediate response generated from Rosie's knowledgebase. Upon detection of a possible health emergency, Rosie sends emergency resources and relevant hotline information. In addition, a study staff member, who is a clinical social worker, reaches out to the participant within 24 hours to follow up. Preintervention and postintervention tests were completed to qualitatively and quantitatively evaluate Rosie and describe changes across key health outcomes, including postpartum depression and the frequency of emergency room visits. These measurements were used to inform the clinical trial's sample size calculations., Results: Of 41 individuals who were screened and eligible, 31 (76%) enrolled and 29 (71%) were retained in the study. More than 87% (13/15) of Rosie treatment group members reported using Rosie daily (5/15, 33%) or weekly (8/15, 53%) across the 3-month study period. Most users reported that Rosie was easy to use (14/15, 93%) and provided responses quickly (13/15, 87%). The remaining issues identified included crashing of the app (8/15, 53%), and users were not satisfied with some of Rosie's answers (12/15, 80%). Mothers in both the Rosie treatment group and control group experienced a decline in depression scores from pretest to posttest periods, but the decline was statistically significant only among treatment group mothers (P=.008). In addition, a low proportion of treatment group infants had emergency room visits (1/11, 9%) compared with control group members (3/13, 23%). Nonetheless, no between-group differences reached statistical significance at P<.05., Conclusions: Rosie was found to be an acceptable, feasible, and appropriate intervention for ethnic and racial minority pregnant women and mothers of infants owing to the chatbot's ability to provide a personalized, flexible tool to increase the timeliness and accessibility of high-quality health information to individuals during a period of elevated health risks for the mother and child., Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT06053515; https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06053515., (©Quynh C Nguyen, Elizabeth M Aparicio, Michelle Jasczynski, Amara Channell Doig, Xiaohe Yue, Heran Mane, Neha Srikanth, Francia Ximena Marin Gutierrez, Nataly Delcid, Xin He, Jordan Boyd-Graber. Originally published in JMIR Formative Research (https://formative.jmir.org), 12.01.2024.)