High-risk Pregnancy: Women's Experiences and New Approaches to Care

Pregnancy involves physical, psychological, and social changes and when deemed high-risk, these experiences are amplified. High-risk pregnancy is characterized as a pregnancy in which the mother and/or fetus are at greater risk than normal of morbidity and mortality. Women and their families face significant physical, emotional, and psychological challenges due to uncertainty regarding the pregnancy outcome.

The emotional and psychological experiences of women in high-risk pregnancies are profoundly influenced by the care they receive and their relationships with healthcare professionals are particularly important in this context. Person- and family-centered care models have the potential to significantly improve the quality of care and pregnancy outcomes, as they can address patient needs on an individual level. Understanding women’s experiences is essential to supporting them and their families throughout the course of the pregnancy and enabling the bonding process with their baby after the delivery. More than anything, the goal of individualized care should be to contribute to women’s well-being as well a positive pregnancy experience.

This Research Topic welcomes papers concerning the experiences of women and their families with high-risk pregnancies and how their experience may be influenced by different models or approaches to care, acknowledging the complexity of factors involved. The goal is to highlight new interdisciplinary care models that are personalized, humanizing, and center women’s experience and ability to cope with the prolonged period of uncertainty that typically accompanies high-risk pregnancies. This collection will promote better-informed healthcare practices and policies that prioritize the well-being of women and their families facing high-risk pregnancies across different clinical care settings.

This Research Topic, titled “High-risk Pregnancy: Women's Experiences and New Approaches to Care” welcomes papers from academics, clinicians, and other healthcare professionals in the field. Topics of interest include:

- The psychosocial and emotional impact of a high-risk pregnancy diagnosis
- Education needs arising from the diagnosis of a high-risk pregnancy
- Aspects related to quality of care and how it influences outcomes such as access to personalized, culturally competent care and the importance of patients’ relationships with their healthcare providers
- Factors related to women’s and their families’ ability to cope with prolonged uncertainty such as social support, the role of spirituality and religiousness and the perception of hope
- Women’s autonomy and ethical considerations related to the decision-making during the care process
- Opportunities presented by the implementation of innovative technologies in the care process

Authors are welcome to submit quantitative and qualitative original research, review articles (systematic, integrative, scoping, mini, policy and practice), clinical trial, case report and brief research reports. Submissions should adhere to the guidelines and standards of Frontiers in Global Women’s Health.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Policy Brief
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: Pregnancy, High-Risk, Life Change Events, Pregnancy Complications, Prenatal Diagnosis, Mental Health, Psychological Well-Being, Hope, Spirituality, Family Relations, Life Course Perspective, Culture

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.