THE EFFECTS OF SELF-MANAGEMENT SUPPORT VIA TELEHEALTH ON FOOD CONSUMPTION BEHAVIOR, IRON SUPPLEMENT ADHERENCE, AND HEMATOCRIT LEVEL IN PREGNANCIES WHO RECEIVE SERVICES IN CHIANG DAO HOSPITAL

Abstract

          The objectives of this study were to investigate the incidences of anemia during pregnancy and to compare food consumption behavior, iron supplement adherence, and hematocrit levels before and after the intervention. This research was a quasi-experimental one-group study adopting a pretest–posttest design. The participants were 15 pregnant women attending antenatal care at Chiang Dao Hospital who had hematocrit levels of ≥33% and a gestational age (GA) of <16 weeks. Participants were selected using simple random sampling and were followed for a period of 20 weeks. Data were analyzed with computer programs using descriptive statistics, the Wilcoxon signed-rank test, and Paired t – test. The results showed that anemia occurred in 13.33% of the pregnancies during the study period (95% CI = 1.7– 40.5). The median scores of food consumption behavior at weeks 12 and 20 were significantly higher than before the intervention (Z = 3.420, p = .001) for both points in time. The median scores Iron supplement adherence increased progressively after the intervention, with significant differences observed at weeks 4, 12, 16, and 20 (Z = 2.014, p = .044; Z = 2.014, p = .044; Z = 2.060, p = .039; and Z = 2.060, p= .039, respectively). Although an improvement was observed at week 8, it was not statistically significant (p > .05). Furthermore, the mean scores of hematocrit levels showed no statistically significant difference (t = 1.11, p = .282). It was suggested that self-management support through telehealth could enhance pregnant women’s self-care capacity and serve as an alternative approach for anemia prevention during pregnancy.