“The Name of This is Fourth Trimester. A Lot of People Don’t Know About it”: A Qualitative Analysis to Inform the Development of a Web-Based Tool

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this qualitative study is to understand the pregnant and postpartum experiences of Black women in the United States to inform the development of a web-based mobile tool. METHODS: Participants were recruited through Facebook Groups. There were a total of 19 women that participated in one of five focus group discussions. Participants ranged from being in their 3rd trimester of pregnancy through 6 months postpartum. Thematic content analysis was performed to identify emerging themes. RESULTS: Four themes emerged from the focus group discussions: beliefs about postpartum motherhood, experiences during pregnancy, experiences of the postpartum period, and tool recommendations. Key results from these themes demonstrated the difficulties that women faced in having their concerns resolved by healthcare professionals, receiving adequate educational and social support during the COVID-19 pandemic, and having adequate information to help breastfeed and cope with changes they experienced throughout the postpartum period. CONCLUSION: The results highlight the difficulties that Black women experienced throughout pregnancy and the postpartum period. The main findings show that women lacked support in receiving information about the postpartum period, had their concerns dismissed by healthcare professionals, and received inadequate support. These findings can inform the practice of healthcare professionals and inform the development of other non-clinical, digital resources to fill in these gaps. Future research in this area is planned to further develop and pilot the tool among a broader population of women.