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A Guide to Implementing Fourth-Trimester Care in a Family Medicine Practice

ELIZABETH BROWN, MD, MPH
STACY BARTLETT, MD

FPM. 2026;33(3):21-27.

Author disclosures: no relevant financial relationships.

This content conforms to AAFP criteria for CME.

Earlier contact with patients during the postpartum period is important for assessing complications and preventing maternal morbidity.

Dr. Brown is an associate professor and director of Family Medicine Clerkship, Department of Family Medicine, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Rochester, N.Y.

Dr. Bartlett is an assistant professor, Department of Family Medicine, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Shadyside Family Medicine Residency, Pittsburgh.

Send comments to fpmedit@aafp.org, or add your comments to the article online.

Author disclosures: no relevant financial relationships.

  1. 1.Four in five pregnancy-related deaths in the U.S. are preventable. CDC. Sept. 19, 2022. Accessed April 1, 2026. https://archive.cdc.gov/#/details?q=4%20in%205%20pregnancy%20related%20death%start=0%rows=10%url=https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2022/p0919-pregnancy-related-deaths.html
  2. 2.Optimizing postpartum care. Committee Opinion No. 736. ACOG. May 2018. Reaffirmed 2025. Accessed April 1, 2026. https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/committee-opinion/articles/2018/05/optimizing-postpartum-care
  3. 3.Interpregnancy care. Obstetric Care Consensus No. 8. ACOG. January 2019. Reaffirmed 2025. Accessed April 1, 2026. https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/obstetric-care-consensus/articles/2019/01/interpregnancy-care
  4. 4.Paladine HL, Blenning CE, Strangas Y. Postpartum care: an approach to the fourth trimester. Am Fam Physician. 2019;100(8):485-491.
  5. 5.Fourth trimester: redefining postpartum care through an innovative model. IMPLICIT Network. Accessed April 1, 2026. https://implicitnetwork.org/projects/4th-trimester/
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