Crying babies, tired mothers - challenges of the postnatal hospital stay: an interpretive phenomenological study

BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth

Research Article

Elisabeth Zemp Stutz¹  Johanna Biedermann²  Irene Hösli²  Elisabeth Spichiger³  Elisabeth Kurth⁴  Holly P Kennedy⁵ 

[1] Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Socinstrasse 57, Postfach, 4002, Basel, Switzerland;University Hospital, Women's Clinic, Spitalstrasse 21, 4031, Basel, Switzerland;University of Basel, Institute of Nursing Science, Bernoullistr. 28, 4056, Basel, Switzerland;University of Basel, Institute of Nursing Science, Bernoullistr. 28, 4056, Basel, Switzerland;Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Socinstrasse 57, Postfach, 4002, Basel, Switzerland;Yale University School of Nursing, 100 Church Street South, CT USA. 06536, New Haven, USA;

关键词: Sleep Deprivation;    Postpartum Depression;    Postnatal Care;    Caesarean Birth;    Shake Baby Syndrome;   

DOI  :  10.1186/1471-2393-10-21

 received in 2009-07-02, accepted in 2010-05-13,  发布年份 2010

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundAccording to an old Swiss proverb, "a new mother lazing in childbed is a blessing to her family". Today mothers rarely enjoy restful days after birth, but enter directly into the challenge of combining baby- and self-care. They often face a combination of infant crying and personal tiredness. Yet, routine postnatal care often lacks effective strategies to alleviate these challenges which can adversely affect family health. We explored how new mothers experience and handle postnatal infant crying and their own tiredness in the context of changing hospital care practices in Switzerland.MethodsPurposeful sampling was used to enroll 15 mothers of diverse parity and educational backgrounds, all of who had given birth to a full term healthy neonate. Using interpretive phenomenology, we analyzed interview and participant observation data collected during the postnatal hospital stay and at 6 and 12 weeks post birth. This paper reports on the postnatal hospital experience.ResultsWomen's personal beliefs about beneficial childcare practices shaped how they cared for their newborn's and their own needs during the early postnatal period in the hospital. These beliefs ranged from an infant-centered approach focused on the infant's development of a basic sense of trust to an approach that balanced the infants' demands with the mother's personal needs. Getting adequate rest was particularly difficult for mothers striving to provide infant-centered care for an unsettled neonate. These mothers suffered from sleep deprivation and severe tiredness unless they were able to leave the baby with health professionals for several hours during the night.ConclusionNew mothers often need permission to attend to their own needs, as well as practical support with childcare to recover from birth especially when neonates are fussy. To strengthen family health from the earliest stage, postnatal care should establish conditions which enable new mothers to balance the care of their infant with their own needs.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© Kurth et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2010