Development and psychometric properties of the maternal health needs scale in Chinese maternal women

There is very limited research on maternal health needs and no reliable validated research tools have been developed. The purpose of this study was to develop and test a Maternal Health Needs Scale (MHNS) in Chinese maternal women.

Using Maslow's hierarchy of needs as the theoretical model, the pool of items regarding maternal health needs was developed through existing literature, expert evaluation and modification, and a pilot study's feedback. One hundred pregnant women without pregnancy complications were recruited from the outpatient department of a tertiary hospital in China for the pilot study to select appropriate items and form the MHNS. The reliability and validity of MHNS was tested using data collected in two tertiary hospitals in China, with 1304 pregnant women enrolled and 1050 of them with completed questionnaires. The MHNS was modified and finalized according to the analyzed results.

The final version of MHNS had six dimensions with 23 items. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.94 for the total scale; the test-retest reliability was 0.85; and the split-half reliability was 0.85. The MHNS showed great validity: model Chi-Square was 693.07; Minimum Discrepancy (Chi-square Mean/Degree of Freedom) was 3.22; Root Mean Square Error of Approximation was 0.07; Comparative Fit Index was 0.94; and Tucker-Lewis Index was 0.93. The item with the highest score of maternal health needs was knowing the symptoms and coping strategies when the baby is abnormal; the item with the lowest score of MHNS was knowledge of sexual intercourse during pregnancy.

The MHNS is reliable and valid for assessing maternal health needs and could be used in future studies for the health needs of Chinese maternal women without pregnancy complications or cognitive impairment.