“Very Good” Ratings in a Survey of Maternity Care: Kindness and Understanding Matter to Australian Women

• Published in: Birth (Berkeley, Calif.) Calif.), 2017-03, Vol.44 (1), p.48-57
• Main Authors: Todd, Angela L., Ampt, Amanda J., Roberts, Christine L.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Antenatal care; Attitudes; Carers; Childbirth; Demographic aspects; Female; Hospitals; Hospitals, Public; Humans; Kindness; Maternal characteristics; Maternal child nursing; Maternity benefits; maternity care; New South Wales; Obstetrics - standards; Patient satisfaction; Patient Satisfaction - statistics & numerical data; Postnatal care; Postnatal Care - standards; Postpartum period; Pregnancy; Prenatal Care - standards; Quality management; Quality of Health Care - statistics & numerical data; Ratings & rankings; Regression Analysis; satisfaction; survey; Surveys; Surveys and Questionnaires; understanding; Women; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0730-7659; 1523-536X
• DOI: 10.1111/birt.12264

Background Surveys have shown that women are highly satisfied with their maternity care. Their satisfaction has been associated with various demographic, personal, and care factors. Isolating the factors that most matter to women about their care can guide quality improvement efforts. This study aimed to identify the most significant factors associated with high ratings of care by women in the three maternity periods (antenatal, birth, and postnatal). Methods A survey was sent to 2,048 women who gave birth at seven public hospitals in New South Wales, Australia, exploring their expectations of, and experiences with maternity care. Women's overall ratings of care for the antenatal, birth, and postnatal periods were analyzed, and a number of maternal characteristics and care factors examined as potential predictors of “Very good” ratings of care. Results Among 886 women with a completed survey, 65 percent assigned a “Very good” rating for antenatal care, 74 percent for birth care, 58 percent for postnatal care, and 44 percent for all three periods. One factor was strongly associated with care ratings in all three maternity periods: women who were “always or almost always” treated with kindness and understanding were 1.8–2.8 times more likely to rate their antenatal, birth, and postnatal care as “Very good.” A limited number of other factors were significantly associated with high care ratings for one or two of the maternity periods. Conclusions Women's perceptions about the quality of their interpersonal interactions with health caregivers have a significant bearing on women's views about their maternity care journey.