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The needs of postbirth parents: an international, multisite study
C Stainton1, B Murphy, P G Higgins
1C olleen S tainton is Professor and Clinical Chair of Women's Health Nursing in the Department of Family and Community Health Nursing at the University of Sydney and at the Royal Hospital for Women in Sydney, Australia.
The Journal of Perinatal Education
|September 5, 2012
Summary
Contemporary parents, both mothers and fathers, prioritize self-care needs during the postpartum period. Current postpartum care models may need adjustments to better support these evolving parental self-needs.
Area of Science:
- Maternal and Child Health
- Sociology of Health
- Healthcare Policy
Background:
- Recent healthcare reforms have shifted postpartum care from hospital settings to community-based services.
- The impact of this transition on the specific needs of parents has not been thoroughly evaluated.
- Existing postpartum care often emphasizes family-centered approaches.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the evolving needs of mothers and fathers during the postpartum period.
- To assess whether current community-based postpartum care models adequately address parental needs.
- To identify specific self-needs of parents in the postbirth phase.
Main Methods:
- A qualitative study involving content analysis of interviews.
- Data collected from 117 mother-father pairs across six international sites.
- Interviews conducted at two key postpartum intervals: early (5-10 days) and later (6-8 weeks).
Main Results:
- Both mothers and fathers consistently reported a strong focus on their own self-needs throughout the postpartum period.
- Parental self-needs were a primary concern across all studied international sites.
- A significant gap exists between the identified parental self-needs and the family-centered focus of current programs.
Conclusions:
- Postpartum care reforms require a re-evaluation to incorporate the self-needs of contemporary parents.
- Family-centered care models alone may be insufficient to meet the holistic needs of parents.
- Future postpartum support strategies should acknowledge and address individual parental self-care requirements.
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