TY - JOUR
AU - C. Rego
AU - J. E. Santiago
AU - E. S. Miller
AU - C. F. Garfield
AU - J. Gollan
AU - K. O'Sullivan
AU - D. Williams
AU - E. Montague
AU - Y. S. Lee
A1 - 
AB - BACKGROUND: The postpartum period represents a critical period for both birthing and nonbirthing parents due to mental health concerns and new caregiving demands. Collaborative care models aim to address these needs, but postpartum care remains fragmented, lacking continuity and holistic support. Baby2Home (B2H) is a digital intervention rooted in the collaborative care model, specifically designed to support parents through their transition into parenthood by addressing their physical, emotional, and psychosocial needs. This intervention seeks to close the gaps left by traditional care models by providing continuous, organized, and accessible support throughout the postpartum period. In our qualitative study of the B2H intervention, we reference the parallel journeys framework and use it as a part of our analysis to evaluate whether mobile health (mHealth) technology addresses the holistic needs (postpartum and psychosocial) of new parents. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to assess how the B2H app supports the holistic needs of new parents and addresses care gaps identified in traditional postpartum services. METHODS: We conducted semistructured interviews with 20 birthing and nonbirthing parents selected through purposive sampling based on their app use. Data were analyzed using the postpartum parallel journeys framework and inductive coding. RESULTS: Our findings demonstrate the comprehensive impact of the B2H intervention in addressing both the physical and psychosocial needs of new parents. B2H supported postpartum care by helping parents navigate uncertainties, enhancing health care provider-parent communication, promoting self-care, and increasing parental self-efficacy. Psychosocial support included symptom identification, timely care manager assessments, coordinated treatment, and transition resources. The app also addressed care gaps by promoting inclusivity for nonbirthing parents, bridging screening and treatment, supporting real-time treatment navigation, and ensuring continuity of care. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrate that the use of mHealth technology such as the B2H app can effectively support the multifaceted needs of new parents during their postpartum care period. By applying the parallel journeys framework, the research also identifies gaps in care that are addressed by the B2H app, presenting unique opportunities for future development and research.
AD - Jarvis College of Computing and Digital Media, DePaul University, Chicago, United States.; The Center for Health and Social Sciences, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States.; Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine, The Warren Alpert Medical School, Brown University, Providence, RI, United States.; Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern Medicine, Chicago, IL, United States.; Industrial Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
AN - 40857707
BT - JMIR Pediatr Parent
C5 - HIT & Telehealth; Healthcare Disparities
DA - Aug 26
DO - 10.2196/70936
DP - NLM
ET - 20250826
JF - JMIR Pediatr Parent
LA - eng
N2 - BACKGROUND: The postpartum period represents a critical period for both birthing and nonbirthing parents due to mental health concerns and new caregiving demands. Collaborative care models aim to address these needs, but postpartum care remains fragmented, lacking continuity and holistic support. Baby2Home (B2H) is a digital intervention rooted in the collaborative care model, specifically designed to support parents through their transition into parenthood by addressing their physical, emotional, and psychosocial needs. This intervention seeks to close the gaps left by traditional care models by providing continuous, organized, and accessible support throughout the postpartum period. In our qualitative study of the B2H intervention, we reference the parallel journeys framework and use it as a part of our analysis to evaluate whether mobile health (mHealth) technology addresses the holistic needs (postpartum and psychosocial) of new parents. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to assess how the B2H app supports the holistic needs of new parents and addresses care gaps identified in traditional postpartum services. METHODS: We conducted semistructured interviews with 20 birthing and nonbirthing parents selected through purposive sampling based on their app use. Data were analyzed using the postpartum parallel journeys framework and inductive coding. RESULTS: Our findings demonstrate the comprehensive impact of the B2H intervention in addressing both the physical and psychosocial needs of new parents. B2H supported postpartum care by helping parents navigate uncertainties, enhancing health care provider-parent communication, promoting self-care, and increasing parental self-efficacy. Psychosocial support included symptom identification, timely care manager assessments, coordinated treatment, and transition resources. The app also addressed care gaps by promoting inclusivity for nonbirthing parents, bridging screening and treatment, supporting real-time treatment navigation, and ensuring continuity of care. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrate that the use of mHealth technology such as the B2H app can effectively support the multifaceted needs of new parents during their postpartum care period. By applying the parallel journeys framework, the research also identifies gaps in care that are addressed by the B2H app, presenting unique opportunities for future development and research.
PY - 2025
SN - 2561-6722
SP - e70936
ST - Understanding the Implications of mHealth Technology in Collaborative Care Programs and Its Role in Supporting Postpartum Care: Qualitative Interview Study of the Baby2Home Intervention Using the Parallel Journeys Framework
T1 - Understanding the Implications of mHealth Technology in Collaborative Care Programs and Its Role in Supporting Postpartum Care: Qualitative Interview Study of the Baby2Home Intervention Using the Parallel Journeys Framework
T2 - JMIR Pediatr Parent
TI - Understanding the Implications of mHealth Technology in Collaborative Care Programs and Its Role in Supporting Postpartum Care: Qualitative Interview Study of the Baby2Home Intervention Using the Parallel Journeys Framework
U1 - HIT & Telehealth; Healthcare Disparities
U3 - 10.2196/70936
VL - 8
VO - 2561-6722
Y1 - 2025
ER -