Quality of counselling in intrapartum recovery in Finland – cross-sectional survey

Abstract

Abstract

Introduction: Counselling is becoming increasingly important in postpartum recovery. Good quality counselling is necessary to help mothers adapt to the changed situation after childbirth and to recover from it. Therefore, postpartum counselling is important to adapt mothers to the changed situation after childbirth and to recover from it. Midwife-led counselling was provided in the wards before and after childbirth. Postpartum counselling includes matters related to going home after childbirth, caring for the newborn, and recovering from childbirth. This study aims to describe the quality of postpartum counselling, and the factors associated with it.

Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study design was used, and data were collected from mothers who gave birth at Finnish university hospital in 2021. The study conducted an electronic survey using a 65-item Quality of Counselling Instrument. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, differences between background and sum variables were tested using Chi-squared or Fisher’s test and using the t-test or Mann-Whitney U-test. Logistic regression analysis was used to predict the quality of counselling. The survey was distributed to mothers during their stay in the maternity ward and via social media, and 132 mothers completed the survey.

Results: Slightly more than half of the mothers (54%) received sufficient information about childbirth and postpartum recovery and counselling was family-orientated (85%). Most mothers (79%) felt that counselling had a positive benefit on their well-being. The effect of counselling on lifestyle was weaker; less than half of the mothers (42%) felt that the counselling had a positive effect on their lifestyle (p < 0.002). The sum variables mother’s well-being (OR=13.25; 95% CI=2.79, 63.03; p <0.001), mother’s way of life (OR=4.02; 95% CI=1.65, 9.78; p <0.002) and family-orientation in counselling (OR=8.45; 95% CI=1.57, 45.46; p <0.013) predicted good quality of counselling.

Conclusions: This study results showed that mothers received adequate information about childbirth and postpartum recovery. Also, counselling was implemented in a family-oriented way. Mothers who live alone had to take more account during counselling session in the hospital. Further research is needed to determine the effectiveness of various counselling interventions in different settings.