Abstract
BackgroundPregnant women in Canada have traditionally received prenatal care individually from their physicians, with some women attending prenatal education classes. Group prenatal care is a departure from these practices providing a forum for women to experience medical care and child birth education simultaneously and in a group setting. Although other qualitative studies have described the experience of group prenatal care, this is the first which sought to understand the central meaning or core of the experience. The purpose of this study was to understand the central meaning of the experience of group prenatal care for women who participated in CenteringPregnancy through a maternity clinic in Calgary, Canada.MethodsThe study used a phenomenological approach. Twelve women participated postpartum in a one-on-one interview and/or a group validation session between June 2009 and July 2010.ResultsSix themes emerged: (1) "getting more in one place at one time"; (2) "feeling supported"; (3) "learning and gaining meaningful information"; (4) "not feeling alone in the experience"; (5) "connecting"; and (6) "actively participating and taking on ownership of care". These themes contributed to the core phenomenon of women "getting more than they realized they needed". The active sharing among those in the group allowed women to have both their known and subconscious needs met.ConclusionsWomen's experience of group prenatal care reflected strong elements of social support in that women had different types of needs met and felt supported. The findings also broadened the understanding of some aspects of social support beyond current theories. In a contemporary North American society, the results of this study indicate that women gain from group prenatal care in terms of empowerment, efficiency, social support and education in ways not routinely available through individual care. This model of care could play a key role in addressing women's needs and improving health outcomes.
Highlights
Pregnant women in Canada have traditionally received prenatal care individually from their physicians, with some women attending prenatal education classes
In the United Kingdom, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and New Zealand, there is a high proportion of midwives relative to each country’s population, reflecting the fact that midwives deliver the majority of prenatal care in these countries [4,5,6]. This is in contrast with Canada and other countries, such as the United States and Germany, which have a low proportion of midwives relative to the country’s population and where prenatal care is largely provided by physicians [4]
From September 2008 to July 2010, 77 women had participated in the cohort study on group prenatal care and were eligible to participate in this qualitative sub-study
Summary
Pregnant women in Canada have traditionally received prenatal care individually from their physicians, with some women attending prenatal education classes. The purpose of this study was to understand the central meaning of the experience of group prenatal care for women who participated in CenteringPregnancy through a maternity clinic in Calgary, Canada. The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada guidelines recommend that pregnant women have an initial prenatal visit with her provider within 12 weeks from the time of the her last menstrual proportion of midwives relative to each country’s population, reflecting the fact that midwives deliver the majority of prenatal care in these countries [4,5,6]. Women are generally required to pay to attend most prenatal classes in Calgary
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