Feedback from the Field: Feasibility of the Perinatal Food Group Recall Form

Background: Maintaining a healthy weight can reduce risks of excessive weight gain during pregnancy and help prevent maternal and child obesity. Low-income women are high-risk for excessive weight gain during pregnancy. Nutrition counseling can help improve dietary habits, however, it is often provided by paraprofessionals who lack formal training in dietetics. There is a need for a brief dietary assessment form for paraprofessionals serving low-income perinatal women.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to provide feedback on the feasibility of the Perinatal Food Group Recall (PFGR) form among Comprehensive Perinatal Health Workers (CPHWs) serving low-income pregnant and post-partum mothers.

Methods: Nine CPHWs at four clinics were asked to complete their regular dietary assessment form and then administer the PFGR. Key informant interviews with the nine paraprofessionals were conducted to obtain their feedback on the form.

Results: The findings suggest that the form provides a feasible and easy- to-administer dietary assessment tool for use by practitioners without formal dietetics training who serve clinics in low-income communities with heavy client flow.

Conclusion: The form can facilitate the provision of nutrition counseling among low-income mothers and build capacity among community health workers.