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Exploring women's experiences of maternity service delivery in regional Tasmania: a descriptive qualitative study
Citation
Hargreaves, S and Young, Sarah and Prior, SJ and Ayton, J, Exploring women's experiences of maternity service delivery in regional Tasmania: a descriptive qualitative study, Healthcare, 10, (10) Article 1883. ISSN 2227-9032 (2022) [Refereed Article]
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Copyright Statement
Copyright: © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.orglicenses/by/4.0/).
Official URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/10/10/1883
DOI: doi:10.3390/healthcare10101883
Abstract
Abstract: The objective of this study is to explore and understand the experiences of women who receive antenatal, birthing, and postnatal care from an integrated maternity services model in a regional area in Tasmania, Australia. This descriptive qualitative study included semi-structured, one-on-one interviews with 14 mothers aged >18 years, who were living in a regional area of Tasmania and had accessed maternity health services. Thematic analysis revealed three key themes: (i) talking about me, (ii) is this normal? and (iii) care practices. Overall, women cited mostly negative experiences from a poorly implemented fragmented service. These experiences included feelings of isolation,
frustration over receiving conflicting advice, feeling ignored, and minimal to no continuity of care. In contrast, women also experienced the euphoric feelings of birth, immense support, guidance, and encouragement. Regional women's experiences of maternity care may be improved if health services work towards place-based continuity of care models. These models should be informed by the local women's experiences and needs in order to achieve better communication, reduce feelings of isolation, and promote positive breastfeeding experiences.
Item Details
| Item Type: | Refereed Article |
|---|---|
| Keywords: | mothers; continuity; communication; care; maternity services |
| Research Division: | Health Sciences |
| Research Group: | Health services and systems |
| Research Field: | Health and community services |
| Objective Division: | Health |
| Objective Group: | Provision of health and support services |
| Objective Field: | Midwifery |
| UTAS Author: | Hargreaves, S (Mrs Sally Hargreaves) |
| UTAS Author: | Young, Sarah (Dr Sarah Young) |
| UTAS Author: | Prior, SJ (Dr Sarah Prior) |
| UTAS Author: | Ayton, J (Dr Jeffrey Ayton) |
| ID Code: | 153629 |
| Year Published: | 2022 |
| Deposited By: | Medicine |
| Deposited On: | 2022-09-28 |
| Last Modified: | 2022-11-15 |
| Downloads: | 2 View Download Statistics |
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