Emily Patch, Ph.D., and coauthor Eileen McGrath, Ph.D., of the University of Arizona College of Medicine, had their original research exploring mothers’ recall of infant data and maternal health published in The Journal of Maternal-Fetal & Neonatal Medicine. The authors found that, while mothers were accurate in their recollection of gestational age and infant birth weights, they were much less so in reporting their own medical diagnoses. The findings of this research can help medical professionals communicate key information more effectively at postpartum appointments.
Patch, E. A., & McGrath, E. R. (2020). Mother knows best … except when it comes to a diagnosis of preeclampsia: An exploratory study of the convergence between maternal recall of pregnancy-related outcomes and objective medical data. The Journal of Maternal-Fetal & Neonatal Medicine, 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1080/14767058.2020.1718645