Abstract
PurposeTo explore the lived experiences and personal impact of stillbirth on bereaved parents.MethodsSemi-structured in-depth interviews analysed by Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) on a purposive sample of parents of twelve babies born following fetal death at a tertiary university maternity hospital in Ireland with a birth rate of c8,500 per annum and a stillbirth rate of 4.6/1000.ResultsStillbirth had a profound and enduring impact on bereaved parents. Four superordinate themes relating to the human impact of stillbirth emerged from the data: maintaining hope, importance of the personhood of the baby, protective care and relationships (personal and professional). Bereaved parents recalled in vivid detail their experiences of care following diagnosis of stillbirth and their subsequent care. The time between diagnosis of a life-limiting anomaly or stillbirth and delivery is highlighted as important for parents as they find meaning in their loss.ConclusionsThe impact of stillbirth on bereaved parents is immense and how parents are cared for is recalled in precise detail as they revisit their experience. Building on existing literature, these data bring to light the depth of personal experience and impact of stillbirth for parents and provides medical professionals with valuable insights to inform their care of bereaved parents and the importance of clear and sensitive communication.
Highlights
Bereaved parents recalled in vivid detail their experiences of care following diagnosis of stillbirth and their subsequent care
The impact of stillbirth on bereaved parents is immense and how parents are cared for is recalled in precise detail as they revisit their experience
These data bring to light the depth of personal experience and impact of stillbirth for parents and provides medical professionals with valuable insights to inform their care of bereaved parents and the importance of clear and sensitive communication
Summary
Stillbirth is without question one of the most distressing experiences of bereavement with long-lasting impact for bereaved parents, healthcare professionals and society at large.[1,2,3,4] The diagnosis that a baby will not survive or has already died in utero brings with it a bewildering array of emotional distress where birth and death collide and parents move from a trajectory of expectation to one of grief.[5,6,7] How parents are cared for during this time can have long-lasting consequences, both positive and negative.[7, 8]The psychosocial impact of stillbirth on parents is well documented in the published literature and a renewed global focus in 2016 on the prevalence of stillbirth and its associated impact has sought to heighten public awareness of stillbirth as a societal issue.[1, 9,10,11] Stillbirth in Ireland (where this study was conducted) is defined as ‘‘a child born weighing 500 grammes or more or having a gestational age of 24 weeks or more who shows no sign of life’.[12]. The lived experiences of bereaved parents contribute an invaluable insight into the profoundly human experience of this particular grief in obstetrics.[6, 7, 14,15,16,17,18,19] Recently published metasyntheses and a systematic review have affirmed the importance of parental experience following stillbirth and while most studies have explored the impact of stillbirth by way of online questionnaires, fewer have used face to face interviews with bereaved parents.[1, 20, 21]
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