Pregnant women's reactions to routine CO monitoring in the antenatal clinic

Abstract

Guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE, 2010) recommend the use of routine carbon monoxide (CO) monitoring in all pregnant women. However, there is no research describing pregnant women's experiences of being offered the CO test at booking. Method: This was part of a phenomenological study conducted to examine midwives’ experience of using CO monitoring for smoking cessation in pregnancy. Individual semi-structured interviews were carried out and recorded with 10 midwives who use CO monitoring at booking. They were asked about women's reactions to the test. Data were analysed using Colaizzi's (1978) approach and bracketing. Results: Midwives reported that women were generally happy to accept the test. However, pregnant women appeared to be uninformed about it. Other reactions described include curiosity, shock, relief, guilt and surprise at the results. Conclusion: Overall, women's reactions were positive but an increased public awareness of the test would smooth its implementation.