Maternity homes and social support: A cross-sectional survey stratifying outcomes

Poor social support is associated with adverse obstetric outcomes. Maternity group homes (MGHs), residential programs for pregnant women, have been found to improve social support in small studies. The present study aimed to verify these previous studies, discover whether there is a group of women whom MGHs most benefit, identify what services offer that benefit, and identify how to predict who will most benefit from MGH admission. Forty-three US MGHs from 14 states were surveyed from August 2015 to February 2017. The primary outcome was self-reported social support before and during MGH admission. The secondary outcome was the perception that MGH admission would help current and future relationships. Among 95 respondents, 54% perceived better in-MGH support compared to pre-MGH support. Women with poor pre-MGH support reported improvement; the converse was true of high pre-MGH support (P < 0.001). A total of 77% to 82% of participants anticipated that MGH admission would help current and future relationships, including 91% to 92% of women with stable or increased in-MGH support (P = 0.07 current, P < 0.01 future). Participants with increased in-MGH support reported more services as helpful (P < 0.05). In summary, MGHs are associated with improved support and relationships for most residents. The support score may identify which women may benefit most from MGH admission.