Parents' experience of early discharge from hospital after birth in Sweden

Comparison of Health Care Utilization of Postnatal Programs in Sweden

OBJECTIVE

To describe the utilization of health care services, based on number of outpatient visits and readmissions, by mothers and newborns following discharge postnatally after having received various types of maternity care.

DESIGN

The design was a cohort of Swedish women giving birth at full term. All together, 773 women and 782 newborns were followed using questionnaires, registry data, and medical chart notes. The information served as a basis for analyzing utilization of health care services during the first 28 days post-delivery.

RESULTS

Of the women, 15% sought medical care and 1.7% were readmitted, whereas 17% of the newborns received medical care and 2.9% were readmitted. At 6 months, about half were exclusively being breastfed. There was no difference in need to seek health care or breastfeeding outcome owing to type of maternity care.

CONCLUSION

Mothers with newborns sought care relatively frequently but rarely needed to be readmitted after discharge from the maternity care. The risk of readmission during the first month after childbirth was not greater for mothers and children who received care through the family suite or early discharge programs.

Postpartum care should provide alternatives to meet parents’ need for safety, active participation, and ‘bonding’

OBJECTIVE

To describe new parents' choice of the type of maternity care they wanted to receive, the family suite (FS) or an early discharge (ED), and to gain a better understanding of parents' experiences of different postnatal care alternatives.

DESIGN

A qualitative study using semi-structured interviews. The interviews were analysed by content analysis.

SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS

Eleven couples and one mother, including both first-time and experienced parents. Six families received care at a FS while the others chose an ED within 24 hours after birth.

MEASUREMENTS AND FINDINGS

The postpartum period was experienced as an unpredictable time for new parents, when the need for safety, participation in decision-making, and 'bonding' was felt to be central and decisive to their choice of care. The type of care that the parents felt best met their needs varied according to the mother's assessment of her own and the baby's health status, the parents' requirements and experience and the way in which they, as parents, handled the opportunities and demands of different environments. However, the opportunities for the parents to choose the form of care they considered best for their family were limited.

PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS

To best fulfil parents' wishes and needs in postnatal care alternative care forms are needed. Also, a way to treat the family as a whole on an individual family basis must be found and parents of newborn babies should be allowed to choose the form of care they consider best.