Delivery-related knowledge of mothers of NICU infants compared with well-baby-nursery infants

Abstract

This study revealed gaps in mothers' understanding of the medical implications of premature delivery even though most mothers knew the correct length of term gestation. Unexpectedly, NICU mothers who had a child with significant illness and who encountered multiple health care providers did not have improved understanding of perinatal risks. We conclude that all women need to be educated on the significance of the mode and the timing of delivery.

Maternal health literacy and health numeracy conceptualizations in public health: A scoping review

“…Research findings highlight the importance of a mother's comprehension of numerical health information on the risks of gestational diabetes (Carolan et al, 2010; Carolan et al, 2012; Martis et al, 2018; Rhoads‐Baeza & Reis, 2012), oral health (Vamos, Merrell, Livingston, et al, 2019; Vila‐Candel et al, 2020), amniocentesis result (Aune & Möller, 2012), epidurals and caesarean sections (Regan et al, 2013), and modes of childbirth interventions (Chhabra et al, 2014). Mothers have a preference for how risk information is presented to personalise risk (Vamos, Merrell, Livingston, et al, 2019) and want help weighing risks (Aune & Möller, 2012; Chhabra et al, 2014; Payakachat et al, 2016; Regan et al, 2013; Shea, 2020). For example, older mothers prefer to compare their risk with a younger mother's risk using proportions (Aune & Möller, 2012).…”

“…NUM helps mothers interpret and accept health risks (Vamos, Merrell, Detman, et al, 2019), which is particularly important for all parents, and especially mothers who are often the curators of health information (Henry et al, 2020). Research findings highlight the importance of a mother's comprehension of numerical health information on the risks of gestational diabetes (Carolan et al, 2010; Carolan et al, 2012; Martis et al, 2018; Rhoads‐Baeza & Reis, 2012), oral health (Vamos, Merrell, Livingston, et al, 2019; Vila‐Candel et al, 2020), amniocentesis result (Aune & Möller, 2012), epidurals and caesarean sections (Regan et al, 2013), and modes of childbirth interventions (Chhabra et al, 2014). Mothers have a preference for how risk information is presented to personalise risk (Vamos, Merrell, Livingston, et al, 2019) and want help weighing risks (Aune & Möller, 2012; Chhabra et al, 2014; Payakachat et al, 2016; Regan et al, 2013; Shea, 2020).…”

“…Cultural background is a strong determinant of knowledge, education, and English language proficiency (Carolan et al, 2010; Chhabra et al, 2014; Payakachat et al, 2018). Mothers desire equitable treatment regardless of their demographics (Bergman & Connaughton, 2013), as perceived discrimination influences a mother's decision‐making (Evans & Sheu, 2019).…”

“…Mothers have a preference for how risk information is presented to personalise risk (Vamos, Merrell, Livingston, et al, 2019) and want help weighing risks (Aune & Möller, 2012;Chhabra et al, 2014;Payakachat et al, 2016;Regan et al, 2013;Shea, 2020). For example, older mothers prefer to compare their risk with a younger mother's risk using proportions (Aune & Möller, 2012).…”

“…We identified six themes pulled from the discussion and results of the empirical research evidence based on applications in public health planning, implementation, and evaluation; these themes support our aims to understand how MHL and HN are conceptualised, determine the factors which impact a mother's participation in health promotion, and inform opportunities for educational initiatives in public health, clinical practice, education, and learning based on gaps. The six themes identified include (i) sociocultural demographics (refers to background factors such as ethnicity, culture, age, gender, education, and socioeconomic status [SES]); (ii) self-efficacy (refers to the internal capacity of building self-esteem and overall motivation); (iii) communication (refers to those words, non-verbal expressions, and language competencies [e.g., reading, writing, and speaking]) that are facilitators and barriers to communication); (iv) information seeking and operationalisation (refers to comprehension gaps on various aspects of pregnancy exemplified through action in situated, sociocultural environments);(v) health status (refers to health outcomes and influencing factors such as food, nutrition, and physical activity); and (vi) reasoning (refers to aspects of information processing (e.g., judgement, decisionmaking) and the use of information sources requiring appraisal (e.g., a spectrum of basic to advance use of words and numbers for daily or medical use) to understand risk, for example.4.1 | Sociocultural demographicsCultural background is a strong determinant of knowledge, education, and English language proficiency(Carolan et al, 2010;Chhabra et al, 2014;Payakachat et al, 2018). Mothers desire equitable treatment regardless of their demographics(Bergman & Connaughton, 2013), as perceived discrimination influences a mother's decision-making(Evans & Sheu, 2019).…”