Bonnevie E, Barth C, May J, Carey T, Knell SB, Wartella E, Smyser J. Growing and Glowing: A Digital Media Campaign to Increase Access to Pregnancy-Related Health Information for Black Women During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Health Promot Pract. 2023 May;24(3):444-454.
Intervention Components (click on component to see a list of all articles that use that intervention): , Media Campaign (Print Materials, Radio, TV), Mobile Apps
Intervention Description: The Growing and Glowing campaign was a digital intervention designed to increase access to pregnancy-related health information for Black women in Hillsborough County, Florida. The campaign was based on multiple theories of behavior change and aimed to address the issue of low birthweight, which is disproportionately experienced by Black women. The campaign content was delivered through social media channels and a website, and was tailored to the unique needs of the target population. The content included short videos of local trusted healthcare experts and illustrated imagery, and covered topics such as weight gain and nutrition, prenatal care, general empowerment, and COVID-19. The campaign also featured prenatal care providers who were actively practicing in the area and provided connections to community resources. The campaign was launched publicly in March 2020 and ran for the first year. The campaign was evaluated using two cross-sectional surveys and digital metrics from Google Analytics. The results showed significant improvements in pregnancy-related intentions, awareness of local resources, and the importance of prenatal care among women aware of the campaign. , ,
Intervention Results: The results of the Growing and Glowing campaign showed significant improvements in pregnancy-related intentions among Black women in Hillsborough County, Florida. The campaign attained 1,234 followers, 805,437 impressions, and a reach of 19,875. The web series videos were viewed almost 27,000 times, with 89% average viewer retention, and the website attracted 2,634 unique page views. The evaluation surveys revealed significant improvements in positive pregnancy-related intentions, including intentions to talk about nutrition with a doctor, intentions to discuss weight and exercise, and positive trends in intentions to discuss breastfeeding and the baby’s weight. Additionally, women aware of the campaign had significantly higher awareness of local resources and the importance of prenatal care. Despite the limitations of the small sample size, the data collected provided important insights into pregnancy-related knowledge and attitudes of Black women, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Conclusion: The study concluded that the Growing and Glowing campaign, a digital intervention designed for and by Black women, was effective in delivering pregnancy-related health information to the target population in Hillsborough County, Florida. The campaign achieved significant improvements in pregnancy-related intentions and increased awareness of local resources and the importance of prenatal care among women aware of the campaign. The results also highlighted the potential of digital interventions to reach women who may fall outside traditional health advertising in a cost-effective manner, especially during a time when women are engaging in fewer in-person care visits and spending more time online. The study emphasized the benefits of digital advertising in reaching specific populations and the ability to rapidly pivot messages based on local circumstances, ensuring the conveyance of timely, important information. Additionally, the study underscored the need for creative solutions paired with rigorous evaluation methods to establish an evidence base for best practices in reaching pregnant Black women. Despite the limitations of the study, the data collected provided important information on pregnancy-related knowledge and attitudes of Black women, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Study Design: The study design was a pre-post evaluation of the Growing and Glowing campaign, which aimed to increase access to pregnancy-related health information for Black women in Hillsborough County, Florida. The evaluation included two cross-sectional surveys, one conducted before the campaign implementation and the other conducted after the first year of the campaign. The surveys examined pregnancy-related knowledge, attitudes, intentions, and behaviors, in alignment with the two theories underpinning the campaign strategy and content. The surveys were conducted using Qualtrics panels and digital advertisements on social media platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram, and recruitment focused on oversampling Black women. The study also used digital metrics from Google Analytics to understand the campaign’s reach and engagement across all platforms. ,
Setting: The study was conducted in Hillsborough County, Florida, which is located in the southeastern United States. The Growing and Glowing campaign was designed to reach Black women in this area and provide them with pregnancy-related health information tailored to their unique needs
Population of Focus: The target audience of the Growing and Glowing campaign was Black women in Hillsborough County, Florida. The campaign was designed to provide pregnancy-related health information tailored to the unique needs of this population, with a focus on addressing the issue of low birthweight, which is disproportionately experienced by Black women. The campaign messaging adopted a reproductive empowerment lens and focused on educating women on areas related to low birthweight, including weight gain and nutrition, prenatal care, general empowerment, and COVID-19. The campaign content was delivered through social media channels and a website, and was based on multiple theories of behavior change. ,
Sample Size: he baseline survey included 162 respondents, and the follow-up survey included 265 respondents. In both surveys, efforts were made to oversample Black women, and the majority of the respondents identified as Black. The sample size of the surveys may have limited statistical significance in results, which is a challenge for any study reaching a small audience at the county level. Despite these limitations, the data collected as part of this study provide important information on pregnancy-related knowledge and attitudes of Black women, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic
Age Range: The age range of the respondents in both the baseline and follow-up surveys was 18 to 65 years old. The surveys included similar age ranges, income ranges, and proportion of responses who selected “Other” for their race.
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