Abstract
Aims and objectivesTo get a deeper understanding of how mothers in same‐sex relationships think and reason about their parenthood in terms of gender equality, and how they experience early parental support from child healthcare professionals.BackgroundThere is an increasing amount of research on how women in same‐sex relationships experience healthcare services when forming a family. Yet there is limited knowledge of what kind of early parental support these women may request.DesignGrounded theory. Follows guidelines for qualitative research (COREQ).MethodTwenty women ranging from 25 to 42 years of age participated in semi‐structured interviews. Data collection and analysis took place in parallel, as recommended in grounded theory methodology.ResultsThe results are described by the core category Same‐sex mothers request professional support to achieve equal parenthood, which includes five categories: (a) equality in everyday life, (b) diversity in mother and child attachment, (c) justification of the family structure, (d) ambivalent thoughts about their child's future and (e) a special need for networking and request for professional support. These findings provide a deeper understanding of how same‐sex mothers experience their parenthood and the parental support that is offered.ConclusionChild healthcare professionals need to be sensitive and recognise both mothers as equal parents and offer early parenting groups where two‐mother families feel included and supported.Relevance to clinical practiceHealthcare professionals need to be aware of diverse family formations and meet each parent as a unique individual without heteronormative assumptions. Same‐sex mothers must be treated as equal parents and acknowledged as mothers. Healthcare professionals should offer inclusive and supportive parental groups to same‐sex families. They should also inform and support nonbirth mothers about the possibility to breastfeed.
Highlights
Since 2005, same‐sex mothers planning to start a family are of‐ fered assisted fertilisation with donated semen within the Swedish National Health Care coverage (Socialstyrelsen, 2005), and both mothers become legal parents to their child (Riksdag, 2015)
Our aim with this study was to gain a deeper understanding of how mothers in same‐sex relationships think and reason about their parenthood in terms of gender equality, and how they experience early parental support from child healthcare profes‐ sionals
The material was divided and analysed in two parts: (a) the first part relates to the process of get‐ ting pregnant and support from antenatal care and (b) the second part describe experience of parent‐ hood in terms of gender equality, and parental support from child healthcare professionals
Summary
Since 2005, same‐sex mothers planning to start a family are of‐ fered assisted fertilisation with donated semen within the Swedish National Health Care coverage (Socialstyrelsen, 2005), and both mothers become legal parents to their child (Riksdag, 2015). In Sweden, one way of supporting parents is to invite them to take part in an‐ tenatal parental groups. Parents describe that parental groups are of importance both to establish a network and to gain information during the childs first year (Hjälmhult, Glavin, Okland, & Tveiten, 2014). International studies show that same‐sex mothers mostly have positive experiences, even though some expe‐ rience of discrimination occurred when seeking health care for their children (Shields et al, 2012). As professionals at child health care have a responsibility to support families, it is important to under‐ stand same‐sex mothers’ experiences of parenthood and parental support from child healthcare professionals
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
