The childbearing experience during a natural disaster

To gain insight into the needs of pregnant women during Hurricane Katrina.

Grounded theory using semistructured interviews.

Participants were recruited with flyers. Interviews were conducted in a location preferred by the participant.

Eleven participants were interviewed. All were pregnant during the storm, lived in an area affected by Hurricane Katrina prior to the storm, were between the ages of 18 and 49, and spoke English.

Qualitative interviews were performed and recorded, transcribed, and reviewed to organize the women's thoughts into categories.

The core category was disruption of life during pregnancy, and four additional subcategories were destruction of normalcy, uncertainty, loss of expectations, and coping with disruption.

The women relied on family and friends for support. Life in New Orleans for months after the storm was difficult due to unreliable information. Health care professionals that interact with pregnant women should move toward use of electronic medical records and educate women about coping with stress during pregnancy.