{"id":91997,"date":"2026-08-17T10:29:07","date_gmt":"2026-08-17T16:29:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/?p=91997"},"modified":"2026-08-17T10:29:07","modified_gmt":"2026-08-17T16:29:07","slug":"group-prenatal-visits-lead-to-better-outcomes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/group-prenatal-visits-lead-to-better-outcomes\/","title":{"rendered":"Group prenatal visits lead to better outcomes for moms and babies"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"During
During pregnancy, patients typically see their providers once a month for one-on-one visits. At UCHealth Family Medicine in Westminster, pregnant patients, partners and women who have recently given birth get to participate in monthly group visits where they learn from guest speakers and one another. Group prenatal visits lead to better outcomes for moms and babies. Photo by Mark Reis, for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Pregnant women fill a conference room at a doctor\u2019s office, along with some moms who have recently had their babies.<\/p>\n

The women \u2014 and some dads \u2014 chat with one another as their doctor pulls each patient aside for a quick, private one-one-one checkup.<\/p>\n

Dr. Vivian Jiang<\/a> works with her medical assistant, Ashley Mireles, to check each patient\u2019s vital signs and measure the women\u2019s bellies to make sure their babies are growing well in utero.<\/p>\n

These aspects of a monthly prenatal visit are typical.<\/p>\n

\"Dr.
Dr. Vivian Jiang, right, and her team at UCHealth Family Medicine in Westminster offer group prenatal visits in the Denver area to make it easier for pregnant women to stay healthy and learn everything they need to know before giving birth. Photo by Mark Reis, for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What\u2019s unusual is that multiple women have gathered for their prenatal visits at the same time. And while unconventional, these group visits are popular with the patients and their doctor alike.<\/p>\n

Along with providing a fun, social opportunity where pregnant patients and their partners can learn about health topics relevant to their pregnancies and get answers to common questions, group prenatal visits also foster better outcomes for both moms and babies<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cStudies show that women feel more satisfied with their care<\/a>,\u201d said Jiang, who is a family medicine doctor at UCHealth Family Medicine in Westminster<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cPatients feel they have more time to get their questions answered. They have more vaginal births and fewer C-sections. They\u2019re at lower risk for having pre-term deliveries, they\u2019re more likely to breastfeed and their babies have higher birth weights,\u201d said Jiang who is also a senior instructor at the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In other words, bringing babies into the world with a community of support matters. Patients thrive when they have more opportunities to learn from one another<\/a> \u2014 and their medical team \u2014 during their pregnancy and after they give birth.<\/p>\n

Group prenatal visits empower parents so they can have the best possible birth experiences<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Medical providers discovered years ago that group prenatal visits were beneficial to both moms and babies, but the visits involve additional logistics, so they\u2019re not as common as conventional one-on-one prenatal checkups.<\/p>\n

Jiang learned how to do group prenatal visits during her family medicine residency at the University of Rochester Medical Center and always liked the model. A friend and fellow doctor had been doing group prenatal visits at UCHealth\u2019s Westminster clinic, and she recruited Jiang to continue doing them when the friend was leaving.<\/p>\n

A full curriculum guides providers when they offer group prenatal care. Patients can get answers to common questions about pregnancy, delivery and what to expect after their babies arrive.<\/p>\n

\"UCHealth
Photo by Mark Reis, for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cThere are many topics that we don\u2019t have time to talk about in-depth during a typical one-on-one visit,\u201d Jiang said.<\/p>\n

But during group visits, providers and guest speakers can take the time to provide detailed presentations and answer questions that are the same for many patients.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople are pregnant only a handful of times in their lives. Your body is changing so much, and you don\u2019t know what you don\u2019t know. You wonder: \u2018Is this normal or not? What am I allowed to ask my doctor?\u2019\u201d Jiang said.<\/p>\n

A typical 20-minute prenatal visit doesn\u2019t allow for deep conversations on every topic, of course.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why group visits are so valuable.<\/p>\n

\"Dr.
Dr. Vivian Jiang, right, visits with her patient, Erin Melzer, left, and her daughter, Noelle, who was 7 weeks old when Erin attended a class to learn more about breastfeeding. Erin has an older daughter too and said the monthly prenatal classes at UCHealth Family Medicine in Westminster made it much easier for her to navigate the challenges and adjustments after giving birth. Photo by Mark Reis, for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

During two-hour sessions each month, Jiang and her patients gather in a conference room at the clinic. Jiang spends the first hour pulling patients aside to do quick individual checkups. As she does that, nurse Jenn Pittman leads an informal group discussion relevant to the topic for that day. Then, during the second hour of the group visit, a guest speaker gives a presentation on a specific topic with time for questions at the end.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe provide education. That\u2019s part of the reason why patients have better birth outcomes,\u201d Jiang said. \u201cThey\u2019re more empowered. They know what to expect and how to advocate for their preferences during their births.\u201d<\/p>\n

She cited the example of one patient who had participated in group prenatal visits and received a lot of education about birth options. The woman was eager to have a vaginal birth. When it came time for her to have her baby, her labor was lasting a long time, and she felt pressure to have a C-section. Instead, the woman asked for a little more time.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe advocated for herself and successfully delivered her baby vaginally,\u201d Jiang said.<\/p>\n

\"UCHealth
New parents love learning from one another and from experts during group prenatal visits, where they get checkups with their provider, Dr. Vivian Jiang, along with special presentations each month on topics like breastfeeding, pain relief options during birth and tips for optimizing pelvic floor muscles. Photo by Mark Reis, for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

During pregnancy and following the births of their babies, patients love connecting with one another<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In addition to learning more about birth options, pregnant patients love connecting with one another, Jiang has found.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople often are searching for a community where they can talk and compare notes. Group prenatal visits allow for that,\u201d Jiang said. \u201cThe idea is that patients teach each other about pregnancy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jiang also has more time to answer questions during group visits.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn a group setting, I get a full hour with the patients. We can all talk,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"A
Baby Noelle, then 7-weeks-old, grins happily in her mom, Erin Melzer’s lap during a breastfeeding class at UCHealth Family Medicine in Westminster. Dr. Vivan Jiang and her team offer group prenatal visits rather than short one-on-one checkups because they help both moms and babies thrive. Photo by Mark Reis, for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Many patients have the same questions.<\/p>\n

\u201cMost patients are young and healthy. Their bodies are just going through big changes. In an individual visit, I don\u2019t have time to answer all the questions. In a group visit, they get a lot more information. Plus, they get to meet each other, which is really nice for them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Common questions include:<\/p>\n