Mother’s satisfaction of postpartum care and its relationship with midwifery care at Urban Health Centers, Mashhad, Iran

Abstract

<strong><em>Background & aim:</em></strong> Maternal satisfaction of health services is an inherent element of healthcare policies, and quality of midwifery care essentially influences this parameter. This study aimed to evaluate maternal satisfaction of postpartum care and its association with midwifery care at the urban health centers of Mashhad, Iran in 2012. <br/><strong><em>Methods:</em></strong>This descriptive, cross sectional study was conducted on 411 mothers selected via multistage sampling from 16 urban health centers in Mashhad, Iran in 2012. Data were collected using the structured questionnaire of maternal satisfaction and observation checklists to assess the technical and communication skills of midwives. Data analysis was performed in SPSS V.16. <br/><strong><em>Results:</em></strong> Among the aspects of midwifery care, 92% of postnatal women were satisfied with consultation and training, 92.3% were satisfied with the technical competency of midwives, and 96.6% were satisfied with the communication skills of midwives. Moreover, high levels of maternal satisfaction of midwifery services were reported in dimensions of providing demographic and delivery history, use of dietary supplements and breastfeeding, and performing physical examinations (blood pressure measurement and scleral examination). However, no significant correlation was observed between maternal satisfaction and quality of care (P<0.05). <br/><strong><em>Conclusion: </em></strong>According to the results of this study, the majority of mothers were satisfied with the quality of postnatal care and midwifery services. Considering the desirable level of maternal satisfaction with the competency of clinical staff, which could not be authentically cited due to the limited information of mothers regarding professional medical care, special attention must be paid to the enhancement of the performance and responsiveness of midwives. In addition, identification of the causes of poor healthcare services in the provision of postnatal care requires further investigation.