Preferences of caregiver when experiencing nausea and vomiting during pregnancy

To assess the preferences of pregnant women regarding the type of assistance desired to alleviate the consequences of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy (NVP).

Women with NVP were asked to complete an online survey of 12 questions assessing the extent of NVP and the perspective on the importance of different healthcare professionals for their improvement.

A total of 121 pregnant women completed the survey. The median maternal age was 29 years and the average gestational age was 12.4+/-7.6 weeks. Sixty-four of the women (52.9%) had NVP in their previous pregnancy, which resulted in an average of 14.6+/-21.1 lost days of paid work. NVP necessitated admission to the emergency room in 36 (29.7%). When asked to rate (max 4 points) which healthcare professional would provide the best assistance for NVP, the physician was rated as the most important (average score of 3.56/4), followed by dietician (3.40/4), nurse (3.05/4) and social worker/psychologist as least important (1.77/4).

Our findings illustrate women's perspective on NVP. According to our online survey, women perceive medically- and nutritionally-based care as most useful, whereas psychosocial factors are perceived to be less useful despite playing a central role in NVP.