Satisfaction With Care in Labor and Birth: A Survey of 790 Australian Women
Abstract
ABSTRACT:Data on satisfaction with care in labor and birth were gathered in a survey conducted in conjunction with a review of maternity services in Victoria, Australia. All women who gave birth in one week in 1989 (>1000) were mailed questionnaires eight to nine months after the birth, with a response rate of 790 (71.4%). When adjusted for parity in a logistic regression model, the following factors were highly related to dissatisfaction with intrapartum care: lack of involvement in decision making (p < 0.001), insufficient information (p < 0.001), a higher score for obstetric intervention (p = 0.015), and perception that caregivers were unhelpful (p = 0.04). No association was found between satisfaction and maternal age, marital status, total family income, country of birth, or health insurance status. The survey results were influential in shaping final recommendations of the Ministerial Review of Birthing Services by countering stereotypes about women who become dissatisfied with their care, providing evidence of far greater dissatisfaction with intrapartum than antenatal care, and demonstrating the importance of information, participation in decision making, and relationships with caregivers to women's overall satisfaction with intrapartum care.
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The questionnaire was largely based on previous studies of models of care conducted in Victoria.
“The questionnaire was largely based on previous studies of models of care conducted in Victoria [6, 18].”
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- Authors
- Brown, S., & Lumley, J.
- Affiliations
- Monash University (AU)
- ORCID
- Brown, Stephanie
- Venue
- Birth
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 1994-03
- Volume
- 21
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 4-13
- ISSN
- 0730-7659 (ISSN-L)
- 1523-536X
- OpenAlex
- W2050882565
- Cited by
- 255
- References
- 32
- Citations by year
- 2025: 4 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 5 · 2020: 8 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 9 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 19 · 2014: 9 · 2013: 5 · 2012: 14
- FWCI
- 7.57
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Birth (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Obstetrics and Gynecology › Maternal and Perinatal Health Interventions
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Patient Satisfaction in Healthcare
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Maternal and Neonatal Healthcare
- Keywords
- patient satisfaction, intrapartum care, childbirth, obstetric care, decision-making, patient information, obstetric surgery, caregiver-patient relationship, prenatal care, Victoria, Australia
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Communication, Consumer Behavior, Female, Humans, Labor, Obstetric, Maternal Health Services, Parity, Patient Participation, Pregnancy, Professional-Patient Relations, Surveys and Questionnaires, Victoria, Delivery, Obstetric
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