Enhancing antenatal care in BLMK ICS

Implementing and evaluating a co-produced, community-based intervention to enhance timely antenatal care initiation and uptake among mothers in ethnically diverse socio-economically disadvantaged areas in Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes

• Starting well
• Reducing inequalities

It has long been known that antenatal care, which expectant mothers receive from medical professionals from the moment their pregnancy is confirmed until labour begins, is an efficient method of maximising both the health of the mother and the unborn child. Compared to White women and those from less poor communities, women from ethnic minority origins and those who reside in socially deprived communities are much more likely to start prenatal care later and attend fewer appointments. There is also a greater chance of poor health outcomes for these mothers and their unborn children; unequal and delayed access to prenatal care has been suggested as a possible contributing factor. Therefore, by implementing and assessing a tailored community-based co-produced intervention, the project seeks to improve mothers' timely antenatal care initiation and adequate uptake among them in ethnically diverse, socially disadvantaged areas of Bedfordshire, Luton, and Milton Keynes (BLMK).

• To significantly reduce inequalities among ethnically diverse and socially deprived communities using a tailor-made community-based approach
• To ensure that all mothers have access to the care they need to have a healthy pregnancy, which in turn will maximise positive outcomes for mothers and babies enabling a good start in life