Purpose: To determine if diabetic gravidas enrolled in Centering® group care have improved glycemic control compared to those attending standard prenatal care. To compare compliance and patient satisfaction between the groups.
Materials and methods: We conducted a prospective cohort study of diabetics enrolled in centering group care from October 2013 to December 2015. Glycemic control, compliance and patient satisfaction (five-point Likert scale) were evaluated. Student's t-test, Chi-Square and mixed effects model were used to compare outcomes.
Results: We compared 20 patients in centering to 28 standard prenatal care controls. Mean fasting blood sugar was lower with centering group care (91.0 versus 105.5 mg/dL, p =0.017). There was no difference in change in fasting blood sugar over time between the two groups (p = 0.458). The percentage of time patients brought their blood glucose logs did not differ between the centering group and standard prenatal care (70.7 versus 73.9%, p = 0.973). Women in centering group care had better patient satisfaction scores for "ability to be seen by a physician" (5 versus 4, p = 0.041) and "time in waiting room" (5 versus 4, p =0.001).
Conclusion: Fasting blood sugar was lower for patients in centering group care. Change in blood sugar over time did not differ between groups. Diabetic gravidas enrolled in centering group care report improved patient satisfaction.
Keywords: Centering; diabetic group prenatal care; diabetic prenatal care; group prenatal care.