Validation of the modified mothers on respect index (MMORI) for measuring respectful maternal care in a tertiary...

To develop and validate a modified mothers on respect index (MMORI) to quantitatively measure respectful maternity care (RMC) in a tertiary Indian setting.

The first phase of the study involved the development and validation of the tool by experts. The validated scale was then used on a pilot of 50 women delivering at our tertiary center to check for feasibility and performance. Their responses were analyzed quantitatively to measure RMC. Descriptive analysis was carried out, and continuous variables are presented as mean (± standard deviation [SD]) and categorical variables as percentages and frequencies.

The modified scale was validated by experts and further tested on the pilot population for feasibility. The item level content validity index (I-CVIs) of all items in the MMORI scale ranged from 0.85 to 1.00. The scale level content validity index/average (S-CVI/Ave) was 0.97 with Fleiss kappa at 0.946 and Cronbach's alpha of 0.745. The mean respect score was 63.2 (±5.87); 92% of scores fell under high respect and 8% in moderate respect. There were no mothers who reported low respect.

We validated a quantitative assessment tool for RMC modified for the tertiary Indian setting. The tool developed demonstrated strong psychometric properties. Since the tool was tested on a pilot population, these results are preliminary, and conclusion cannot be drawn from this small sample. A larger study is planned to use this validated tool to highlight the practice of RMC at our center. Such quantitative tools help determine quality of RMC programs and health care services and improve patient experience and satisfaction.