Reducing Barriers to Self-Care for Low-Income Pregnant Women with Diabetes

Nearly half of pregnant women are affected by obesity or diabetes. The addition of a disease in pregnancy amplifies the requirements for optimal self-care during pregnancy. This load of information poses a significant burden to compliance and pregnancy success. We propose to develop a patient-centered education and self-care tool for use with women whose pregnancies are complicated by diabetes. This tool will be the product of a preliminary study exploring barriers to self-care, including literacy, numeracy, self-efficacy, and social barriers, in low-income women with diabetes during pregnancy. We believe such a tool will enhance patient ability to perform self-care for diabetes tasks during pregnancy.