Home pregnancy test use and timing of pregnancy confirmation among people seeking health care

Pregnancy recognition trajectories: a needed framework

“…The age of a person shapes their belief that signs or symptoms are linked to pregnancy - particularly if they consider themselves too young or old to be pregnant. 9 Whether a person has experienced pregnancy before influences their ability to recognise one, using their lived experience, whilst it might also reduce the likelihood of recognising a pregnancy if the signs and symptoms are different from prior pregnancies. 9 Experiences of violence and the nature of the sexual encounter could compound emotional and physical barriers to recognition, making critical the consideration of the relationship between trauma and recognition.…”

“…In addition to overcoming these obstacles, some individuals are less trusting of the accuracy of tests, and others may avoid tests to preclude having “proof” of pregnancy. (Ralph 2022 )…”

The frequency of pregnancy recognition across the gestational spectrum and its consequences in the United States

“…Overall, 36% of these pregnant people took their pregnancy test at 6 weeks gestation or more and 21% did so at 7 weeks or more. 12 People with unplanned pregnancies often seek abortion care 13 and because unplanned pregnancy is associated with later pregnancy recognition, research with people who had abortions adds an indispensable new dimension to research with people who had a live birth.…”

“…Ralph and colleagues surveyed 259 pregnant people with varied plans for pregnancy outcomes (25% presenting for prenatal care, 34% for abortion care, 31% for a pregnancy test, 10% for other health care) and patients reporting an unplanned pregnancy were more likely to take their first pregnancy test after 6 weeks compared to those with planned or ambivalent pregnancies (42% vs. 26%). Overall, 36% of these pregnant people took their pregnancy test at 6 weeks gestation or more and 21% did so at 7 weeks or more 12 …”

Effectiveness of Peer Counselling in Management of Teenage Pregnancy in Secondary Schools

“…In South Africa, teenage pregnancy has become a focus of discussion partly because of an unfolding longitudinal case that involves school policy on pregnant learners. Ralph, Foster, Barar & Rocca, (2020) also explains that a teenage pregnancy victim may have unwillingly become pregnant after being coerced into sex by means of physical force, economic background or peer pressure. The father may be a schoolboy, a teacher, a man old enough to be the girl's father or even a close relative.…”