Women's Experiences of Care During Pregnancy in a Continuity of Midwifery Care Project in Rural Sweden

BACKGROUNDIn antenatal care, health checkups, information, and support is provided to women. Midwifery continuity models of care provide women access to evidence-based care.OBJECTIVEThe aim of this study was to evaluate women's experiences of pregnancy and antenatal care in a continuity of midwifery care project, as well as to gauge the impact the project had on the women's emotional well-being and satisfaction.METHODThis was a cohort study of 226 women enrolled in a continuity of care project in rural Sweden. Profiles of the women were created based on levels of depressive symptoms, worries, fear of birth, and sense of coherence. Data was collected through questionnaires. Odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals were calculated between the clusters for the explanatory variables.RESULTWomen in the two clusters differed in some background characteristics. Women in Cluster 2 had more visits to a doctor. They also received more counseling due to fear of birth and viewed the number of midwives as “too many.” They were less satisfied with the medical, emotional, and overall aspects of their antenatal care. Perceived health, preparedness for birth, and parenthood were rated lower by women in Cluster 2.CONCLUSIONThis study found that women's assessment of their antenatal care was associated with their emotional health. Negative feelings toward changes in pregnancy were often found in women with poorer emotional health, and these women reported being less prepared for birth and parenthood. Thus, it is important to identify women with emotional distress and to provide them additional support and continuity.

What Do Women Want? Consent for the Use of Electronic Fetal Monitoring

BACKGROUNDGuidelines published by professional associations of midwives, obstetricians, and nurses in the United States recommend against using continuous cardiotocography (CTG) in low-risk patients. In the United States, CTG or electronic fetal/uterine monitoring (EFM) rather than auscultation with a fetoscope or Pinard horn is the norm. Interpretation of the fetal heart rate (FHR) and uterine activity (UA) tracings provided by continuous EFM may be associated with the decision for a cesarean birth. Typically, consent is not sought in the decision about type of monitoring. No studies were identified where women's attitudes about the need to consent to the type of fetal monitoring used during labor have been explored. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to examine women's attitudes about the use of EFM in a healthcare setting.METHODSWe asked a sample of women aged 18–50 years to respond to one of three monitoringscenarios. The scenarios were used to distinguish between attitudes about monitoring in general, monitoring the health of a mother in labor, and monitoring the health of the fetus during labor. Wemeasured their level of interest in being monitored and their opinions about whether healthcare providers should be required to obtain consent for the monitoring described in the scenario.RESULTSInterest in receiving monitoring (across all three scenarios) was moderate, with the highest level of interest in monitoring the fetus during labor and the least interest in monitoring a general health context. Across all scenarios, 82% of respondents believed that practitioners should obtain consent for monitoring, 14% were unsure, and 4% said there should not be a requirement for consent. While low (6%), the percentage responding that consent was not needed was highest in monitoring a fetus in labor.CONCLUSIONSWomen in our study expressed a strong preference for the opportunity to consent to the use of monitoring regardless of the healthcare scenario. There is findings suggest the need for further research exploring what women do and do not know about CTG and what their informed performance are a pressing need to rethink the role of a pressing need to rethink the role of shared decision-making and informed consent about the type of monitoring use during labor.

Barriers to Quality Midwifery Care: A Systematic Review and Meta-Synthesis of Qualitative Data

BACKGROUNDSkilled attendance at birth by well-educated and regulated midwives has been identified to reduce maternal and neonatal deaths, however, it has been established that midwives experience barriers that can affect their ability to provide quality care to women and neonates.AIMThis systematic review and meta-synthesis of qualitative data was conducted to investigate the barriers to midwives' ability to provide quality care focusing on African and developed countries.METHODSThe Joanna Briggs Institute process for conducting systematic reviews was followed for this review. Qualitative studies that reported on barriers to midwives' ability to provide quality care were identified by searching the following databases: CINAHL, PubMed, Web of Science, and PsychINFO. Studies reported in English in the last 10 years, within which most participants were midwives and the data reported on barriers to quality care provision by midwives were included in this review.RESULTS813 published research studies were screened, and 11 research papers were included in this review. The meta-synthesis of the findings resulted in six categories: the lack of equipment; inadequate skills and training, lack of space and infrastructure, staff shortages and high workloads, emotional barriers, and workplace culture. Using the Donabedian model of quality care, the barriers were grouped into structure, process, and outcome factors.CONCLUSIONCurrently efforts to improve quality care in African countries focus on structural factors. Efforts to improve quality care in developed countries focus on process factors. In order to improve quality care for women and neonates, efforts need to be focused on all the factors that promotequality care.

Secondary Dyspareunia After Childbirth: A Pilot Study for Comparison Between Group of Women With Episiotomy and Women Without Perineal Trauma

PROBLEMDyspareunia research following childbirth usually includes women who received an episiotomy during childbirth. Few studies have examined dyspareunia after childbirth in women who had no episiotomy or perineal trauma.PURPOSEThe purpose of this study was to compare the incidence of dyspareunia in women with perineal trauma related to childbirth to women without perineal trauma related to childbirth. The second aim was to assess risk factors for dyspareunia after childbirth.METHODSA quantitative cross-sectional study was designed and data were collected from a questionnaire that were sent via the internet (online). The study was performed in Slovenia. The study design included purposive and snowball sampling. Participants were assured anonymity.Analysis of data was conducted using SPSS 20.0. Factor analysis determined the validity and Cronbach's coefficient alpha determined the reliability of the questionnaire. The adequacy of a correlation matrix for factorization was assessed with the Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin (KMO) test and the Bartlett's test. To determine statistically significant differences, the chi-square (χ2) test was used. Kullback–Leibler divergence was used to measure how one probability distribution was different from the other probability distribution when the χ2 test was not satisfactory.FINDINGSThere were 387 respondents to the online questionnaire and 22% of the women who received an episiotomy prior to childbirth reported dyspareunia after childbirth; 13.69% reporteddyspareunia when they had no perineal trauma associated with childbirth. Dyspareunia persisted up to 18 months in 11% of participants who had an episiotomy and in 8% of women who experienced no perineal trauma.DISCUSSIONAfter an atraumatic childbirth, women can also experience dyspareunia. Pregnant women may benefit when their provider knows the risk factors for dyspareunia and limits episiotomy to those situations when there is a clear indication. Additional research may elucidate risk factors for dyspareunia following an atraumatic delivery.

Women's Experiences of the Coping With Birth Trauma:A Psychoeducational Group Support Program

OBJECTIVEBetween 20%-50% of women experience birth as traumatic, with negative impacts for women, infants and families. Currently, there is a lack of evidence into supportive interventions to ameliorate women's adverse responses following a traumatic birth. In North-West UK, a 6-week psychoeducation group support program (Coping with Birth Trauma [CwBT]) was developed and delivered by two trained therapists. The course aimed to facilitate women's understanding of trauma, and to provide coping strategies; additional speakers were also invited to discuss specialist issues. The aim of this evaluation was to explore women's experiences and perceptions of the CwBT, and to identify recommendations for course development.METHODSFollowing university ethics approval, all the women who had attended a CwBT course (n = 3) were invited to take part in a telephone interview. Eight women out of a possible sample of 16 agreed to participate. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the interview data.RESULTSTwo themes and associated sub-themes describe the social, cognitive and instrumentalcomponents of the CwBT course (“Creating a difference”) and how the course facilitated growth and help-seeking behaviors (“Growth and renewal”). The final theme “complaints and recommendations” details critical reflections and suggestions for course development. Recommendations included speakers from different therapeutic backgrounds and more opportunities for contact with women at different stages of their trauma journey.CONCLUSIONSOverall, the course was well received with positive implications for health, wellbeing and family functioning. Further and large-scale studies to assess its effectiveness are needed.

Fear of Childbirth and Associated Factors Among Pregnant Mothers Who Attend Antenatal Care Service at Jinka Public Health Facilities, Jinka Town, Southern Ethiopia

BACKGROUNDWomen face many challenges from conception to postpartum, and fear of childbirth is one of the challenges the women encounter during pregnancy. This could have resulted from different perspectives and it could in turn lead to various pregnancy and childbirth problems. Thus, understanding childbirth fear and factors associated with this is of paramount importance and this study was aimed at addressing this issue.METHODOLOGYA facility-based cross-sectional study was done on 423 pregnant mothers who came for antenatal care services at Jinka hospital and Jinka health center. The study was conducted from June 1to 30, 2018. The sample size was calculated using the single population proportion formula and samples were taken after proportional allocation was done for the hospital and health center using the proportion allocation formula. Individual participants were selected with a systematic sampling technique using k-value of 2 for both the hospital and health center and the first participant was selected by the lottery method from the first two samples. Data were entered into epi-data version 3.1.1. and exported into statistical packages for social sciences version 21.0 for cleaning and further analysis. The level of significance was declared at a p value of less than 0.05 in multivariable logistic regression model. Narratives, figures, and tables were used to put the result.RESULTFrom 423 samples, two of the questionnaires were incomplete and thus 421 were used for analysis giving a response rate of 99.5%. Around a quarter of 102 (24.2%) mothers had fear of childbirth and the remaining 319 (75.8%) had no fear of childbirth. From the factors under consideration, history of previous pregnancy complications, previous history of labor and delivery complications, educational status, and depression status were significantly associated with a mother’s fear of childbirth.CONCLUSIONEven though it is physiological to have some fear of childbirth, the figure obtained is relatively higher. Factors found to have a significant effect on childbirth fear are those which could be tackled through improved health literacy and integrated maternal health services.

Prevalence of Antenatal Depression and Its Associated Risk Factors Among Pregnant Mothers Attending Antenatal Care Service at Jinka Public Health Facilities, Southern Ethiopia

BACKGROUNDAntenatal depression is the most common psychiatric disorder during pregnancy with serious consequences for the mother and the fetus. However, there are few studies about this health issue in developing countries. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of antenatal depression and its associated risk factors among pregnant mothers attending antenatal care service at Jinka public health facilities, south Omo zone, Southern Ethiopia.METHODSInstitutional-based cross-sectional study design was conducted on 446 pregnant women at Jinka public health facilities, from June 1 to June 30, 2018. Beck Depression Inventory was used to assess women's level of depression. Statistical package for social science version 20.0 was used for analysis. Logistic regression was used to find out the association between explanatory and depression. The strength of association was evaluated using odds ratio at 95% confidence interval (CI).RESULTThe magnitude of antenatal depression in this study was 24.4% (20.2–28.5 at 95% CI) and it had statistically significant association with unmarried marital status a djusted o dds r atio (AOR) = 13.39 [(95% CI); (3.11–57.7)], chronic medical illness AOR = 3.97 [(95% CI); (1.07–14.7)], unplanned pregnancy AOR = 6.76 [(95% CI); (2.13–21.4)], history of abortion AOR = 2.8 [(95% CI); (1.14–7.02)], history of previous pregnancy complication AOR = 4.8 [(95% CI); (2.12–17.35)], and fear of pregnancy-related complications AOR = 5.4 [(95% CI); (2.32–12.4)].CONCLUSIONSNearly one pregnant woman develops antenatal depression in every four pregnant women. Variables like unmarried marital status, chronic medical illness and unplanned pregnancy, history of previous pregnancy complications, and fear of pregnancy-related complications were associated with antenatal depression. Therefore, it is recommended that these risks factors should be evaluated during antenatal care with a view to improving maternal health.

Translation and Validation of the Birth Satisfaction Scale-Revised in Urdu for Use in Pakistan

BACKGROUNDSatisfaction with the birth experience is increasingly recognized as critical to the well-being of mother and baby and thus accurate assessment of this key dimension is essential. The Birth Satisfaction Scale-Revised (BSS-R) has been shown to be a robust, valid, and reliable measure of birth experience. The current study sought to develop an Urdu version of the measure to be used in Pakistan.METHODSFollowing translation, a cross-sectional design was used to examine the measurement properties of the Pakistan (Urdu)-BSS-R (P-BSS-R). Participants were a purposive sample of Pakistani postnatal women (n = 200). Key psychometric properties were examined using Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), internal consistency evaluation, and known-groups discriminant validity testing.RESULTSThe majority of measurement parameters for clinical application of the P-BSS-R were found to be acceptable with good know-groups discriminant validity and data fit to the tri-dimensional theoretical model of the BSS-R observed. However, some idiosyncratic observations were highlighted, including unexpected low internal consistency.CONCLUSIONSThe P-BSS-R was found to be a generally valid and reliable measure of the experience, a caveat being low internal consistency warranting further investigation.

Conceptual Framework for Implementing the Saudi Childbirth Initiative (SCI)

There are many efforts internationally to achieve safe and respectful MotherBaby–Family maternity care. This article is the first to provide a conceptual framework for implementing the Saudi Childbirth Initiative (SCI) in all health institutions in Saudi Arabia. It introduces the 10 Steps of the SCI to strategically achieve a safe and respectful MotherBaby–Family maternity care in order to improve maternal and infant outcome and implement evidence-based maternity care in Saudi Arabia. The SCI is developed upon previous initiatives and integrates and supports much of the current work being carried out by many organizations. The aim of the SCI's 10 Steps is to improve care throughout the childbearing continuum, to save lives, prevent illness and harm from the overuse of obstetric technologies, and promote health for mothers and babies and to provide clear guidelines for providing optimal maternity care. Safe and respectful MotherBaby–Family Maternity Care is measurable and for each of the 10 Steps, there is an associated assessment tool to ensure these guidelines are being established by health institutions. SCI envisions that successful implementation of the 10 Steps can be measured and monitored using the a combination of statistical information and key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure maternal mortality and morbidity outcomes (currently in development) using local assessors.

Effect of Regiosacralis Counterpressure Treatment on the Pain and Interleukin-6 (IL-6) Levels Among Primigravid Mothers During the First Stage Labor

BACKGROUNDSevere pain experienced by mother during the labor can cause fear and anxiety which can interfere with the overall labor process. Controlling pain during the labor process is important. Regiosacralis counterpressure pain management without altering the interleukin-6 (IL-6) level is expected to reduce the pain.OBJECTIVEThis study was aimed to investigate the effects of regiosacralis counterpressure on the pain and IL-6 levels during the first stage of labor among primigravid mothers.METHODA quasiexperiment method with pretest–posttest control group design was applied. Regiosacralis counter-pressure pain management was applied to all study participants who non-randomly recruited by consecutive sampling methods. A total of 52 primigravid mothers were selected and divided into both the intervention group (n = 26) and the control group (n = 26).RESULTThe statistical analysis of the intervention on the pain and IL-6 level showed significant different result between pretest and posttest in the intervention group (p < .001; M pretest pain = 8.96±.528; M posttest pain = 6.96±.774; M pretest IL-6 = 175.539±92.281; M posttest IL-6 = 170,764±70,026).CONCLUSIONRegiosacralis counterpressure treatment is effective to control and reduce pain level during the first stage labor.