Mothers’ lived experiences of antenatal care in Malta

Abstract

The purpose of antenatal care is to prevent, identify and treat conditions that may threaten the health of the mother and her baby, and ensure a positive birth experience through person-centred care (WHO, 2016). This study aimed to explore how mothers experience antenatal care in the local setting. Objectives were set to understand and elicit the meaning of the lived experiences of mothers’ antenatal care provided at the local public hospital, the primary health care centres and the private clinics. An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) study was conducted using a purposive sample of ten mothers recruited from the local public hospital, post-natal wards in the immediate post-partum period. Data was collected through one-time, face-to-face, semi-structured interviews with each participant. The ‘Quality Maternal and Newborn care Framework’ (Renfrew et al., 2014) guided this study. Data was analysed using IPA analysis described by Smith, Flowers and Larkin (2009). Three super-ordinate themes emerged from the data; ‘A Sense of Being Cared For’, ‘What Matters’ and ‘Addressing the Unknown’. Results showed that antenatal care during pregnancy was essential to mothers as it provided them with guidance, reassurance, encouragement, peace of mind and support during a crucial time in their life. Mothers felt that antenatal care should be woman-centred and tailored to their individual needs. Furthermore, mothers seeking antenatal care in the private sector felt that antenatal care should be offered in clinics solely for pregnant women and not other patients seeking alternative health care. Mothers identified the midwife as a fundamental part of antenatal care as her role goes beyond the mother’s physical, aspects of care but extends to a spiritual, emotional, and cultural level. Recommendations for midwifery practice, education and research are proposed, namely providing fully functioning antenatal care clinics in the community to avoid referrals to other clinics/hospital, creating workshops on cultural and religious diversity and how it impacts antenatal care, and conducting a similar study, however exploring both mothers’ and fathers’ experiences of antenatal care.