Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 25, 2025
A Novel Method for Involving Women of Color at High Risk for Preterm Birth in Research Priority Setting
Published on: January 12, 2018
Women's childbirth experience emphasizing own capacity and safety: A cross-sectional Rwandan study
Judith Mukamurigo1, Marie Berg2, Laetitia Nyirazinyoye3
1Institute of Health and Care Sciences, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden; School of Public Health, College of Medicine and Health and Care Sciences, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Rwanda, Rwanda.
Problem And Aim:
Women's childbirth experience is central when assessing intrapartum care quality. This study accordingly measures women's childbirth experience in Rwandan health facilities, focusing on own capacity and perceived safety.
Methods:
A cross-sectional health facility-based study was conducted December 2014 to January 2015 in Kigali City and the Northern Province. Childbirth experience was assessed before discharge using an overall assessment and two subscales, Own capacity and Perceived safety, of the Childbirth Experience Questionnaire, with high scores reflecting a good experience. The questionnaire was translated from English into Kinyarwanda. Reliability was tested using Cronbach's alpha; and mean scores between groups were compared using Mann-Whitney U test.
Findings:
All invited women (n = 817) agreed to participate after informed consent. Mean age was 27.8 years and 63.6% were multiparous. A majority of women (82.3%) reported an overall positive childbirth experience (≥8 out of 10). Cronbach's alpha indicated good reliability for Own capacity (0.78) and Perceived safety (0.76). In both subscales multiparous women had higher mean scores than primiparous, married women scored higher than unmarried, older women (>35) scored higher than younger (<35), and women with higher level of education scored higher than those with lower level. Women with HIV scored lower on perceived safety.
Conclusion:
A majority of the women reported a positive overall childbirth experience. Own capacity and perceived safety are important dimensions of childbirth experience and should be addressed in building high-quality intrapartum care. Further research is needed and should include exploration of specific groups.
