Browsing by Author "Prata, Ana Paula"
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- Fear of childbirth in time of the new coronavirus pandemicPublication . Souto, Sandra Patrícia Arantes do; Albuquerque, Rosemeire Sartori de; Prata, Ana PaulaOBJECTIVE: Reflect on how the new coronavirus pandemic triggered or accentuated the fear of childbirth in pregnant women and affected childbirth care practices. METHODS: Reflective analysis of women's pregnancy and childbirth experiences during the current pandemic, supported by the latest scientific evidence and recommendations on the topic. RESULTS: Pregnancy and childbirth are life-changing events for women, but during the new coronavirus pandemic, fear and uncertainty have taken on an unprecedented dimension in the negative way that many pregnant women have anticipated and experienced childbirth. FINAL CONSIDERATIONS: The current period has accentuated a chronic problem: a paternalistic system of health institutions in the approach to childbirth, dense with additional levels of fear in pregnant women. In this context, addressing the fear of childbirth means not giving up the promotion of safe and positive birth experiences for women.
- Midwifery interventions to reduce fear of childbirth in pregnant women: a scoping review protocolPublication . Souto, Sandra Patrícia Arantes do; Albuquerque, Rosemeire Sartori de; Silva, Rosa Carla Gomes da; Guerra, Maria João; Prata, Ana PaulaObjective: The objective of the review is to map and analyze midwifery interventions to reduce fear of childbirth in pregnant women. Introduction: Fear of childbirth is a phenomenon negatively affecting women's health and well-being before and during pregnancy, as well as after childbirth. During the previous few decades, there has been a growing interest in research into interventions to reduce the fear of childbirth in childbearing women. Currently, providing an appropriate model of care for pregnant women with fear of childbirth is a challenge in midwifery care. Therefore, further efforts are needed to identify and examine the characteristics of different midwifery interventions to reduce fear of childbirth in pregnant women. Inclusion criteria: This scoping review will consider studies that include interventions to reduce fear of childbirth in pregnant women, led and implemented by midwives, during the antenatal period, in all possible birth scenarios. Quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods studies will be included. Methods: The JBI methodology for conducting scoping reviews will be employed. Published and unpublished literature in English, Portuguese, and Spanish, from 1981 to the present, will be included. MEDLINE, CINAHL Complete, Scopus, Web of Science, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases will be searched. Searches for gray literature will be performed. Data will be extracted using a tool developed specifically for the scoping review objectives.
- Midwives' interventions for reducing fear of childbirth in pregnant women: a scoping reviewPublication . Souto, Sandra Patrícia Arantes do; Silva, Rosa Carla Gomes da; Prata, Ana Paula; Guerra, Maria João; Couto, Cristina; Albuquerque, Rosemeire Sartori deOBJECTIVE: The objective of this review was to map and analyze midwives' interventions for reducing fear of childbirth in pregnant women. INTRODUCTION: Fear of childbirth is a phenomenon negatively affecting women's health and well-being before and during pregnancy. Over the past few decades, there has been growing research interest in interventions for reducing fear of childbirth in pregnant women. One of the challenges in midwifery care is to provide an appropriate model of care for pregnant women with fear of childbirth. Further research efforts are needed to identify midwives' interventions for reducing fear of childbirth in pregnant women and to examine their characteristics. INCLUSION CRITERIA: This scoping review considered studies that included interventions for reducing fear of childbirth in pregnant women led and/or implemented by midwives during the antenatal period, and integrating all possible midwifery practice settings. Quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods studies were included. This review also considered systematic reviews, text and opinion papers, and conference abstracts. METHODS: An a priori protocol was published and the JBI methodology for conducting scoping reviews was used. Published and unpublished literature in English, Portuguese, and Spanish from January 1981 to October 2020 were included. MEDLINE (PubMed), CINAHL Complete, APA PsycINFO, Scopus, Embase, Web of Science, SciELO, MedicLatina, Academic Search Complete, ERIC, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, and the Cochrane Library databases were searched. Searches for gray literature were also undertaken on the Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal, ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, British Library EThOS, OvidSP Resource Center, Banco de Teses da CAPES, and OpenGrey. A three-step search strategy was followed and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis extension for Scoping Reviews checklist was used. Two independent reviewers extracted the data using a data extraction tool developed specifically for this scoping review. RESULTS: A total of 3704 articles were identified and screened, of which 34 articles were included. The majority of studies had been published in the past 10 years (88.2%) in Scandinavian countries and Australia (79.4%). Several midwives' antenatal interventions were found, such as midwife-led team models of care. Midwives played a facilitator role that varied significantly across the included studies. In 20 studies (58.8%), midwives led and implemented the interventions alone (n = 13; 38.2%) or with the participation of other health professionals (n = 7; 20.6%). In the remaining 14 studies (41.2%), midwives were part of a multidisciplinary team that included different health professionals (mainly obstetricians and psychologists) who had been involved in delivering interventions alongside midwives or with minor participation from midwives. Counseling (n = 12; 35.3%) and psychoeducation (n = 8; 23.5%) were the most common midwife interventions for reducing fear of childbirth in pregnant women. CONCLUSIONS: Midwives working across their full scope of practice play a pivotal role in reducing fear of childbirth, which may help explain the variety of midwives' antenatal interventions. Reducing fear of childbirth in pregnant women and promoting normal childbirth as a positive experience are key features of midwives' interventions, which should include women's empowerment measures. Evidence-based midwife-led intervention programs for pregnant women with fear of childbirth should be designed and tested to improve clinical practice and women's reproductive outcomes and perinatal experiences.
- Nurse and midwife interventions to protect, promote and support breastfeeding: an umbrella reviewPublication . Couto, Cristina; Prata, Ana Paula; Souto, Sandra Patrícia; Machado, Joana; Viana, Clara RoqueteBackground Low breastfeeding rates continue to be a global concern among nurses and midwives, raising critical questions about knowledge and effectiveness in promoting breastfeeding. Summarising evidence on nursing and midwifery interventions to protect, promote, and support breastfeeding enables a deeper understanding of how these professionals can enhance breastfeeding practices, inform decision-makers, and improve care quality. Aim To synthesise nursing and midwifery interventions that protect, promote, and support breastfeeding. Methods The JBI methodology for umbrella reviews guided this study. Searches were conducted in databases aggregated by EBSCOhost, SCOPUS, and Web of Science, as well as relevant grey literature. Systematic reviews published in English, Portuguese, and Spanish from January 2018 to December 2023 were included. Two independent reviewers used a JBI critical appraisal tool and a specific data extraction instrument to synthesise findings. Findings A total of 29 studies met the inclusion criteria. Synthesised findings include: (1) the absence of nursing/midwifery interventions focused on breastfeeding protection; (2) five nursing/midwifery interventions aimed at breastfeeding promotion, with the primary intervention being prenatal education; and (3) twenty-four interventions of nurses/midwives on breastfeeding support, the most frequent being home visits, telephone technology and follow-up. Conclusion This umbrella review reveals limited involvement of nurses/midwives in breastfeeding protection, despite their expertise and potential influence on policy development to support breastfeeding. They are involved in breastfeeding promotion, but most of their intervention is focused on breastfeeding support. The diverse roles and settings of nursing and midwifery practice present challenges in evaluating intervention effectiveness. Further research specific to nursing and midwifery is needed to inform evidence-based practice and policymaking in breastfeeding care.
- The fear of childbirth: a study in the north of PortugalPublication . Prata, Ana Paula; Santos, Célia; Santos, Margarida ReisChildbirth is a universal phenomenon and a meaningful experience that has the potential to trigger developmental transitions, stress, anxiety and/or fear, which, at times, can negatively impact future childbirth experiences. An exploratory and descriptive study was conducted aiming to identify the levels of fear experienced by pregnant women associated with childbirth and their main causes. A convenience sample was selected. Data collection were carried out in an outpatient obstetric hospital in the northern region of Portugal, between July 2010 and July 2012. To evaluate the intensity of fear of childbirth a visual analogic scale of 10 points was applied. Interviews were conducted in order to identify the main causes of fear. Ethical approval and informed consent were obtained. Regarding the level of fear, the majority (98%) of pregnant women had fear of childbirth, 60.2% reported moderate fear and 28% intense fear. Anxiety, primiparity and lack of knowledge related to birthing were also found to increase the fear of childbirth. Some of the main causes of fear identified were: complications during childbirth; pain/suffering; not knowing how to cope with pain; not able to give birth; baby with malformation/disease and/or suffering. Most women feel moderate or intense fear of childbirth and this is associated to well identified causes with high impact on the woman and family. To minimize the effects of fear, an early intervention has to be considered, including childbirth education classes where nurses can address and work women’s fear in order to minimize it and promote a more positive experience.