A Pilot Study: Postpartum Mothers' Perception of the Information Received in the Hospital and Its Usefulness During the First Weeks at Home

The advent of prospective reimbursement provides hospitals with the incentive to decrease the length of the patient stay since hospitals are paid on the basis of patients' diagnoses instead of the traditional third party reimbursement based on length of stay. Communication of mothers' perceived needs to community health nurses for follow up care may prove to be more cost-effective and is essential for coordinating and maintaining quality care. This pilot study investigated: level of knowledge of self-care and infant care at hospital discharge; information found useful by mothers during first weeks at home; and other information that would have been helpful. The investigators developed two questionnaires with sections relating to: peri-care, breast care, food and fluids, elimination, activity, social interaction, infant physical care, infant feeding, and infant behavior. Data were gathered from consenting postpartum mothers by self-report on tools. The In-hospital sample consisted of 83 mothers (normal, full term, uncomplicated pregnancies and deliveries, discharged home with healthy infant within 5 postpartum days)t Mothers completed the first questionnaire on the day prior to discharge, usually the third postpartum day, and returned the second At Home questionnaire after 1 week at home. Seventy-eight mothers returned the second questionnaire: 47 multiparas, 29 primiparas, 51 breast-feeding, and 27 bottle feeding. Data analysis revealed physical care aspects related to self and infant care were reported by a majority of mothers as knowledge achieved. Knowledge attainment in the sections relating to activity, social interaction, and infant behavior were reported less frequently. Most of the mothers indicated all knowledge areas as useful at home. Mothers' written comments indicated a need for more guidance in the area of infant care, particularly infant behavior.