SaperePer

Information, education and understanding of prenatal screening for informed choices

DSCB contact person: Sara Carletto

General project contact person: Luca Marozio, Department of Surgical Sciences

Project team:

Dr. Valeria Bellisario, Department of Public Health and Pediatric Sciences, Online survey coordinator and data manager
Prof. Stefano Cosma, Department of Surgical Sciences, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Città della Salute, Presidio Ospedale Sant'Anna, Scientific tutor
Dr. Andrea Sciarrone, Obstetric/Gynecologic ultrasound and prenatal diagnosis, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Città della Salute, Presidio Ospedale Sant'Anna, Scientific tutor
Prof. Mario Preti, Department of Surgical Sciences, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Città della Salute, Presidio Ospedale Sant'Anna, Scientific Tutor
Prof. Luca Ostacoli, Department of Psychology, Scientific Tutor
Prof. Massimo Collino, Department of Neuroscience “Rita Levi Montalcini,” Scientific Tutor
Prof. Emanuela Rabaglietti, Department of Psychology, Scientific Tutor
Dr. Paolo Gardois, BFM-Federated Library of Medicine, Consultant
Dr. Nicoletta Colombi, BFM-Federated Library of Medicine, Consultant
Dr. Samar El Sherbiny, Department of Public Health and Pediatric Sciences, Ph.D. student
Dr. Marco Panizzolo, Department of Public Health and Pediatric Sciences, Ph.D. student
Dr. Enrica Marzani, Department of Neuroscience, Ph.D. student

Target: Women at any stage of pregnancy, with special attention to those who are about to or have recently undergone first-trimester prenatal screenings.

Description
The Birth Pathway must ensure the care of the mother/couple-newborn dyad through the most appropriate strategies. In this pathway, counseling and prenatal screening tests are crucial to identify those individuals at higher risk of possible fetal diseases to whom more in-depth diagnostic investigations should be offered for the protection of their health and that of the unborn child. Prenatal screening is provided free of charge to all pregnant women, but not all are aware of it, partly because a comprehensive flow of information is not always provided. Therefore, there emerges a need for information that reaches all women but, in particular, women who are more disadvantaged in terms of cultural, social, ethnic, and religious backgrounds. This is so that all can access prenatal screening and, consequently, can make health choices independently and consciously. In this regard, the aim of the project is to raise the level of literacy, particularly of those social strata that most highlight the need for it. Therefore, the goal is to collect information, through an anonymous questionnaire offered in many languages, on the current state of knowledge and participation in prenatal screening.
Subsequently, the necessary and most useful information will be provided in a comprehensive and accessible manner to all women/couples to induce informed decision-making, respecting the ethical values of the decision-maker, but also in order to inform about the most correct health choices and their consequences.

Objectives
The project has a twofold objective:

to collect information on women's/couples' knowledge of and access to the birth pathway and newborn screening, assessing its social, ethical, motivational and psychological aspects;
to use the information collected to increase the awareness and knowledge of stakeholders, health professionals involved and, more generally, the population on the topic.

The project is committed to using the results obtained to implement and improve the counseling process by making it clearer, accessible usable to all, thus ensuring the possibility of informed and conscious choices and increasing awareness and sensitization towards the entire birth pathway.

DSCB role: Dr. Sara Carletto, as the DSCB contact person for the project, participates in the project as a scientific tutor. She collaborated in defining the survey questions in order to integrate a part related to psychological aspects inherent in the knowledge and use of prenatal screening. She also collaborates in the dissemination of the QRcode/link of the survey, due to his clinical activity at SSD Clinical Psychology, P.O. Sant'Anna. She participated in the kick-off meeting to present the project and will be involved in the upcoming dissemination events of the project results.

Project program:

11/26/2024 Kick-off meeting

Survey

For more information visit https://www.sapereper.unito.it/home-page