A salutary childbirth education program: Health promoting by design. A discussion paper

Maternal experiences of women who had received salutary childbirth education: A descriptive qualitative study

BACKGROUND

Childbirth education, underpinned by Salutogenesis, presents a paradigm shift in maternal care. There was no present information about the maternal experiences of women who had received Salutary childbirth education.

OBJECTIVE

The present study aimed to deeply explore women's pregnancy, birth and postnatal experiences who attended the 'Salutary Childbirth Education Program' and shed light on the mechanisms of Salutogenesis on maternal health promotion.

METHODS

A descriptive qualitative study was conducted with 15 mothers. The study was conducted during April-October 2023. Data were obtained through semi-structured, in-depth individual longitudinal interviews to cover all maternal periods. A thematic analysis was performed.

RESULTS

Women stated that they 'acquired normality oriented perspective' which provides 'attribution of positive meanings to the period' and 'freedom from their risk focus concerns'. Women experienced the naturality of the process and were in the flow. They described that they became 'aware of their internal resources', and gained 'skills for the construction of resources' and 'ability to manage the period'. The 'emotional strength' and 'Investment ability for themselves' in addition to obtained autonomy provided them a feeling of strength to actively engage in their experience.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

This study explores the experiences of women who participated in the Salutary Childbirth Education Program and describes the mechanisms of the program's components on their experiences. By doing so, it aims to enhance understanding of how healthcare professionals can present effective childbirth education through the use of the Salutogenesis Model.

PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION

The authors would like to acknowledge and thank the women who attended the education program and were willing to interview.

[Design of a nursing assessment instrument during pregnancy monitoring in Primary Health care and the validation of its content]

OBJECTIVE

This research aims to develop a nursing assessment tool, based on Gordon's Health Functional Patterns, through a content validation by a committee of experts, applying a Delphi technique.

DESIGN

An assessment instrument with 53 items has been designed. SITE: It is carried out within the framework of a doctoral thesis, for its implementation by midwives of Primary Health Care.

PARTICIPANTS

The committee was made up of 16 professionals with a hide clinical, teaching and research experience who all participated in the entire validation process.

INTERVENTION

It has been assessed as a whole and in each of the items through four rounds of consultations, establishing a positive assessment of more than 60% to accept each item, as well as incorporating the suggestions provided by the committee. The final version had to reach a unanimous consensus.

MAIN MEASUREMENTS

All items were accepted with a score higher than 60%.

RESULTS

There were no contradictions between the inputs provided by the experts, so all of them were integrated into the final version that has a 100% approval by the committee.

CONCLUSION

After this process, a new assessment tool is presented to be applied by primary care midwives in the pregnancy monitoring. The questionnaire has been piloted with 50 pregnant women, determining the most prevalent nursing diagnoses, establishing the workload for the midwife of her implementation of individualized care plans to improve some health indicators of pregnant women.

Art-based interventions for women's mental health in pregnancy and postpartum: A meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials

Objective

Pregnant and postpartum women are vulnerable to psychological problems with a high estimated prevalence. To date, there is no meta-analysis that specifically assesses the effectiveness of art-based interventions to improve mental health in pregnant and postpartum women. The objective of this meta-analysis was to assess the efficacy of art-based interventions when delivered to pregnant and postpartum women.

Methods

Systematic literature searches were conducted from the inception to 6 March 2022 in seven English databases, including PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Central Register, CINAHL, ProQuest, Scopus, and Web of Science. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) reporting art-based interventions targeting the improvement of women's mental health in pregnancy and postpartum were included. Cochrane risk of bias tool was applied to assess evidence quality.

Results

Twenty-one randomised controlled trials (RCTs) involving 2,815 participants were eligible for data analysis. A pooled analysis demonstrated that art-based interventions significantly reduced anxiety (SMD = -0.75, 95% CI = -1.10 to -0.40) and depression symptoms (MD = -0.79, 95% CI = -1.30 to -0.28). However, art-based interventions did not alleviate stress symptoms as expected in our findings. Subgroup analysis demonstrated that intervention implementation time, intervention duration and music selected by the participants vs. not could have influence on the efficacy of art-based intervention for anxiety.

Conclusion

In perinatal mental health, art-based interventions may be effective in alleviating anxiety and depression. In the future, we still need to conduct high-quality RCTs to validate our findings and enrich clinical application of art-based interventions.

An educational programme based on salutogenesis theory on childbirth fear and delivery method among nulliparous women: A mixed methods research protocol

AIM

Designing, executing and testing a training intervention based on enhanced concepts of salutogenesis theory for managing fear of childbirth and choice of delivery method among nulliparous women.

DESIGN

A Sequential-Exploratory Mixed Methods Research.

METHODS

In the first phase (qualitative approach), the determinants of childbirth fear among nulliparous women will be explored. In the second phase (systematic review), the factors of childbirth fear among them will be summarized. In the third phase, the content of the educational intervention is developed based on the common factors of childbirth fear obtained from the previous two phases of the study. In the fourth phase (randomized controlled trial), two intervention and the control groups will be compared based on primary and secondary outcomes.

DISCUSSION

Using salutogenesis theory in a few interventional studies on various health areas has produced promising results. Based on the evidence, women had less sense of coherence with a strong childbirth fear. Therefore, developing an effective intervention based on this theory can probably help manage childbirth fear and reduce the costs of any potential consequences.

Art-based interventions during pregnancy to support women's wellbeing: An integrative review

BACKGROUND

The transition to motherhood is a dynamic experience. Antenatal care and education are designed to support women during pregnancy, however childbearing women often report a further need for emotional and social support beyond preparation for birth. Broadening routine antenatal care to included art-based interventions may offer women an opportunity to explore important aspects of the transition to motherhood.

AIM

The aim of this integrative review is to synthesise research regarding the use of art-based interventions with women during pregnancy.

METHOD

A systematic integrative review of the current evidence-base was conducted. A multi-database keyword search was implemented, and a total of six articles met inclusion criteria. Results were analysed using an inductive thematic analysis framework.

FINDINGS

Six studies met the inclusion criteria. Three major themes were generated: art-based engagements supported women to express complex emotion, fostered a sense of connection and strengthened personal resourcefulness.

DISCUSSION

Creative expression provided an opportunity to explore important aspects of the motherhood experience including, complex emotion, identity and bonding with the unborn child. Being in a group enhanced the health effects of art-making and the social connection felt supportive when role and identity was evolving.

CONCLUSIONS

Whilst research on the current topic is emergent, preliminary results suggest that facilitated art-based programs are valuable for pregnant women. Art-based experiences offer women a unique opportunity to explore the full dimensionality of the transition to motherhood which can contribute to improved health and wellbeing. These findings suggest that art-based programs may serve to complement existing antenatal care models.

The role of antenatal education for the prevention of excessive weight gain during pregnancy

BACKGROUND

Excessive weight gain (EWG) during pregnancy is associated to adverse maternal-fetal outcomes. The aim of this study was to analyze the situation in a single high intensity care center in Eastern Piedmont, north of Italy.

METHODS

This is a cohort study including 715 patients classified into four classes corresponding to pregestational BMI values. Based on the WHO's weight gain for each class, women were subdivided into three groups: inadequate, adequate and excessive increase.

RESULTS

EWG was significant in overweight (43.9%) and obese women (37.3%). There was a significant correlation with gestational diabetes (P=0.046), hypertension (P=0.0001), preterm birth (P=0.047), intake of antihypertensive drugs (P=0.0001), maternal study degree (P=0.005), profession (P=0.015), civil status (P=0.003), parity (P=0.039) and paternal ethnicity (P=0.027). Participation at antenatal education for childbirth (AEC) had a positive impact leading to an appropriate weight gain (P=0.004).

CONCLUSIONS

If adequately counselled, women understand the consequences of excessive weight gain during pregnancy, comply more to therapy and modify their lifestyle.