Doctoral Dissertation Research: Examining Integrated Medical Approaches in Hospital Settings

This doctoral dissertation research studies the impacts of integrated medicine on birth outcomes in hospital settings. The investigators specifically address several variables related to patient needs including emotional, physical and clinical support to test the ways that integrated support from both clinical and non-clinical experts improves maternal health outcomes. The research findings contribute to the understanding of how clinical and non-clinical experts can be integrated into obstetric models of medical care to meet patient needs and to coordinate maternal care. In addition to providing training in anthropological sciences to a graduate student, research findings will inform the expansion of public knowledge regarding access to integrated medical care and its associated benefits for maternal health. In order to study the impacts of integrated medical approaches, the investigators utilize a mixed-methods and community engaged research design including semi-structured interviews, quantitative survey instruments, and focus groups. Validity and reliability of the data will be tested using community-based participation. The research contributes to medical anthropology, participatory research methodologies, and the social scientific study of public health and medicine. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.