Uncovering Pica During Pregnancy

Joshua Allas (RN), Verrazano Honors Class of 2019, earned a nursing degree at CSI.

Josh presenting his work on pica

The experiences I had while conducting my Verrazano Honors Capstone were enlightening and worthwhile. My Capstone project is titled “The Incidence and Prevalence of Pica During Pregnancy.” Pica is the consumption of non-nutritive substances that is not appropriate for one’s developmental age and is not considered as a culturally sanctioned practice. As a nursing major, the topic of pica really sparked my interest as I was interested to see what would provoke a pregnant mother to participate in such practices and how pica would affect the mother/fetus.

Conducting this project was truly eye-opening. I've learned about the importance of a holistic approach to nursing care as pica may be caused by numerous factors, including underlying physiological disorders, mental status, and cultural implications. Moreover, pica is an understated disorder in healthcare and may be overlooked when gathering patient information. I plan to carry out the knowledge and experiences I’ve obtained during this project and apply it to future practice as a registered nurse, improving the quality of care that I will be providing for all my patients.

The early stages of the Capstone project seemed daunting at first; having to reach certain deadlines, reaching out to possible mentors, and managing the time to work on the project between studying/completing term papers was very overwhelming. However, with the help and support of my fellow Verrazano peers, my mentor, and my Verrazano advisors, the project soon became almost effortless. Regardless of the project's hardships, I have gained invaluable knowledge, experiences, and relationships that I can carry with me throughout future research endeavors and my future career in nursing.