Maria Brann
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COVID-19 Birth Stories
In this year-long project, Professor Brann and her research partner, Professor Jennifer Bute, first conducted focus groups with women across the country who had given birth during a time when their state or local governments had issued stay-at-home orders because of the COVID pandemic. Then, they followed up a year later by interviewing the same women individually to learn more about raising a newborn during a pandemic.
The researchers found that the isolation of stay-at-home orders and changes in health care policies, such as limitations on hospital visitors and in-person appointments, had a profound effect on women. Women discussed in detail the mental health challenges they faced, such as postpartum depression and anxiety, that they felt were heightened because of the pandemic. Women also discussed the challenges of navigating who had access to visit or hold their newborn, which involved keeping their babies safe while contending with family expectations about seeing the baby. The women who participated in the study were grateful for the opportunity to connect with other women with similar experiences to know that they are not alone. They provided recommendations for helping pregnant women and new moms who are navigating motherhood in an unprecedented time, and even spoke to the media about this project so that other women would feel supported.
Professor Brann's translation of research into supportive groups for new mothers is another excellent example of how IUPUI's faculty members are TRANSLATING their RESEARCH INTO PRACTICE.
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Item Narrative Sense-Making During COVID-19: Using Stories to Understand Birth in a Global Pandemic(Taylor & Francis, 2024) Brann, Maria; Bute, Jennifer J.; Foxworthy Scott, Susanna; Johnson, Nicole L.; Communication Studies, School of Liberal ArtsWomen who gave birth in the spring and summer of 2020 contended with a host of challenging factors. In addition to facing pregnancy, labor, and delivery during an emerging global pandemic, women grappled with health care restrictions that altered their birth experience. To explore how women made sense of their birth during COVID-19, we analyzed written narratives from 71 women who gave birth in the United States from March to July 2020. Based on tenets of communicated narrative sense-making, the themes that emerged from our data suggest that women framed the role of the pandemic as either completely overshadowing their birth experience or as an inconvenience. Women also wrote about threats to their agency as patients, mothers, and caregivers, as well as the evolving emotional toll of the pandemic that often prompted feelings of fear and sadness, along with self-identified anxiety and depression. We discuss these findings in light of the literature on birth stories as essential sites of narrative sense-making for women and their families.Item Identifying communication behaviors and assessing effectiveness among interprofessional healthcare teams: A simulation study(Kentucky Communication Association, 2024) Binion, Kelsey E.; Brann, Maria; Communication Studies, School of Liberal ArtsTo deliver high quality health care, effective communication must exist among providers and between providers and patients. However, communicating across health disciplines is challenging because learners train in professional silos. Using a two-part simulation, this study's objectives were to identify effective communication behaviors of interprofessional healthcare teams and to evaluate their success in delivering team-based care for standardized patients. During the simulation, 10 standardized patients completed an evaluation to assess 46 teams of learners (n = 222). The evaluation included a patient-rated measure of healthcare providers' empathy and communication skills as well as a comment box for feedback. Of the 92 evaluations collected, four effective communication behaviors among interprofessional healthcare teams were identified: be aware of the patient's situation, participate in the interaction equally, create a comfortable environment, and nurture and strengthen a relationship. Learners demonstrated improvement in team communication between the first and second encounters with a standardized patient, and they exhibited five of the eight communication sub-competencies that are deemed necessary for interprofessional collaborative practice. This study demonstrated that learners' communicative behaviors improved during the simulation; thus, future interprofessional simulation activities should consider exercises that require learners to practice and refine their communication and teamwork skills.Item “I’m not sure I’ll ever forget the experience”: a narrative analysis of Chrissy Teigen’s social media describing her miscarriage(Taylor & Francis, 2024) Binion, Kelsey E.; Brann, Maria; Communication Studies, School of Liberal ArtsIn August 2020, celebrity Chrissy Teigen shared on social media that she was pregnant with her third child. The following month, Teigen used social media to document her pregnancy complications. On September 30, 2020, Teigen posted five black and white photographs via Instagram that chronicled the emotional and physical pain of a miscarriage. One month later, Teigen published an online essay describing the circumstances surrounding her miscarriage and explaining the importance of documenting her experience. By using narrative criticism, this study describes the rhetorical features, specifically the characters, settings, and medium, to explain how Teigen, using social media, sparked a national conversation about miscarriage and the need for compassion and awareness. This analysis discusses the implications of using technology in removing the shroud of silence and stigma that exists around miscarriage in American culture.Item “I’m not your mom, I’m your sister:” A Normative Approach to Understand How National Panhellenic Council Sorority Leaders Handle Honest Conversations(Association of Fraternity/Sorority Advisors, 2024) Binion, Kelsey E.; Unruh, Maggie A.; Brann, Maria; Communication Studies, School of Liberal ArtsThis study used Goldsmith’s normative rhetorical theory to explore dilemmas in honest conversations between National Panhellenic Council (NPC) sorority members. Researchers interviewed 16 leaders from one NPC sorority across 14 chapters in the United States. A phronetic iterative analytic approach revealed two communication dilemmas: I have to have this honest conversation with you, but I do not want to and I have power, but I am your equal. To manage these dilemmas, two communicative strategies were identified: intentional planning and message delivery. Findings offer guidance on navigating honest conversations to foster belonging and maintaining a supportive social network.Item Socializing employees into a culture of health(Emerald, 2023-06) Martin, Natalie; Brann, Maria; Goering, Elizabeth; Communication Studies, School of Liberal ArtsPurpose A culture of health within an organization offers benefits such as managing healthcare costs and supporting employees in becoming and staying healthy. This study aims to identify successful organization's strategies utilized to socialize employees into a culture of health. Design/methodology/approach In-depth interviews were conducted with 19 representatives from organizations recognized for their success in creating a culture of health. Grounded theory analysis of collected data was used to identify themes related to the goals of this study. Findings New employees are socialized into the culture of health during the recruitment process, at new employee orientation and throughout the early employment period. Existing employees are also continually socialized using a variety of on-going communication strategies. This process is consistent with Jablin's organizational assimilation model, and this study offers the opportunity to use this model to help understand organizational health. Practical implications Organizations desiring to create a culture of health can support this culture by incorporating socialization strategies into the recruitment, hiring and new employee on-boarding process. Originality/value Though strategies have been shown to be helpful in socializing new employees into organizations, limited research has explored the relationship between socialization and a culture of health. Results from this study offer insight into how organizations that have been recognized for their success in creating a culture of health socialize new and existing employees to create and maintain a culture that supports health and well-being. Also, this study applies socialization theories to health within the workplace, offering new insights both theoretically and practically.Item “I’m Not Comfortable With COVID, But …”: Dilemmas and Decision-Making to Mitigate Risks Among Mothers Who Gave Birth During the COVID-19 Pandemic(Sage, 2024) Johnson, Nicole L.; Brann, Maria; Scott, Susanna F.; Bute, Jennifer J.; Communication Studies, School of Liberal ArtsIndividuals have faced unprecedented uncertainty and risk surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, and decision-making dilemmas have been complicated by quickly evolving and often contradictory recommendations for staying healthy. Using tenets of problematic integration theory and risk orders theory, we analyzed interview data from 50 mothers who gave birth during the pandemic to understand how uncertainty and risk perceptions shaped their decision-making about keeping themselves and their infants healthy in the first year after birth. Results describe how some mothers in our sample made sense of their decision-making to prioritize first-order risks to their own and their family’s physical health, and other mothers prioritized second-order risks to their relationships and identities. We also discuss the social nature of mitigating risk during the COVID-19 pandemic and the catalysts for shifting risk perceptions. Theoretical and practical implications include improving public health messaging and clinical conversations to enable individuals to effectively manage social and identity needs alongside serious threats to physical health.Item Essential Instructional Communication Concepts for Effective Health Campaigns(Taylor & Francis, 2024) Brann, Maria; Communication Studies, School of Liberal ArtsItem Informed Consent(Wiley, 2023) Brann, Maria; Communication Studies, School of Liberal ArtsThis entry provides an overview of informed consent in healthcare interactions. By addressing what constitutes informed consent, taking a brief look at the historical significance of informed consent, and highlighting research that focuses on the informed consent process in health communication, readers gain a better understanding of this necessary communicative act for patient-centered healthcare. The Western value of patient autonomy is noted as necessary for informed decision making, and the problems when respect for persons is overlooked by not engaging in informed consent are discussed. The act, and end result, of informed consent is a recognized right for patients during healthcare interactions.Item Am I Broken?: A mixed-method analysis of an ethnotheatrical performance about women’s experiences with infertility and friendship(Taylor & Francis, 2024) Binion, Kelsey E.; Brann, Maria; Longtin, Krista J.; Health Policy and Management, Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public HealthBackground This study evaluated an ethnotheatrical performance about infertility to bring awareness to the health condition and its impact on friendships. Methods After each performance (N = 2), attendees participated in a talkback session to express thoughts and ask questions about the production; then, they completed a survey describing their overall experience. Analyses included descriptive statistics for Likert questions and a thematic analysis for open-ended responses. Results Eighty-six percent of attendees found the performance informative about the challenges infertility imposes on everyday life, and more than 60% gained new information and advice on how to talk about infertility. The thematic analysis revealed three themes: learn about the complexities of infertility experiences, develop empathy towards individuals with infertility, and respond appropriately to individuals coping with infertility. Conclusion The performance offered a safe environment for attendees to learn, understand, and process infertility’s complex nature. Creating awareness influenced participants’ perceptions and communicative behaviors.Item Jennifer Bute and Maria Brann Research Introduction(Center for Translating Research Into Practice, IU Indianapolis, 2021-09-24) Brann, Maria; Bute, JenniferProfessors Jennifer Bute and Maria Brann briefly discuss their translational research that deals with COVID-19 Birth Stories.
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