Learning Objectives: Recognize the specific stressors among rural mothers who smoke in order to design appropriate interventions to reduce smoking.
Abstract:
Abstract:
Problem/Objective: An overlooked population has been rural low-income mothers who smoke. Franklin County is one of the poorest rural counties in Maine, with one of the highest percentages of women in the nation who smoke just prior to pregnancy (34%) and during, 18.1% (1). The relationship between smoking during pregnancy and low-income is clear. It is also known that women who smoke during pregnancy report more stress in their lives than pregnant women who do not smoke (2). The objective of this abstract is to identify the major stressors of rural mothers in order to design interventions that help to reduce these stressors and decrease smoking. Rural health care providers will most benefit from this information.
Methods: A survey was designed to measure stressors identified by earlier surveys, such as the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System. Questions on additional stressors were added that were more specific to problems of rural mothers, such as transportation, access to medical care, availability of child care, rural isolation, and hunger. Other environmental factors, such as exposure to agricultural pesticides, arsenic and radon in private well water were examined. A random sample of low income mothers in Franklin County were administered the survey in 2003.
Results: Results will be available in October of 2003.
Conclusions: Survey results will assist health providers in rural communities to address specific stressors among mothers and in turn help them to design interventions that reduce smoking.
References: 1. Maine Department of Human Services, Bureau of Health, Office of Data, Research and Vital Statistics, 1999. 2.Maine Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System, 1997-1999.
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