Women and birth : journal of the Australian College of Midwives
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Perinatal mental health problems have been studied in more than 90% of high income countries but this information is available only for 10% of low and middle income countries. A study on the relationship between anxiety during pregnancy and postpartum depression has not been performed in Iran. This prospective study aimed to investigate whether anxiety and fear of childbirth during pregnancy is an independent predictor of postpartum depressive symptoms. ⋯ The findings from this study suggest that antenatal state and trait anxiety, assessed by interview, is an important predictor of postpartum depression. Therefore, it should be routinely screened in order to develop specific preventive interventions.
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To explore fear of childbirth (FOC) during pregnancy and one year after birth and its association to birth experience and mode of delivery. ⋯ FOC was associated with negative birth experiences. Women still perceived the birth experience as negative a year after the event. Women's perception of the overall birth experience as negative seems to be more important for explaining subsequent FOC than mode of delivery. Maternity care should focus on women's experiences of childbirth. Staff at antenatal clinics should ask multiparous women about their previous experience of childbirth. So that FOC is minimized, research on factors that create a positive birth experience for women is required.
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Midwives' ability to manage maternal deterioration and 'failure to rescue' are of concern with questions over knowledge, clinical skills and the implications for maternal morbidity and, mortality rates. In a simulated setting our objective was to assess student midwives' ability to assess, and manage maternal deterioration using measures of knowledge, situation awareness and skill, performance. ⋯ Whilst knowledge levels were generally good, skills were generally poor and decreased as the women deteriorated. Such failures to apply knowledge in emergency stressful situations may be resolved by repetitive high stakes and high fidelity simulation.