Midwife-led Continuity and Satisfaction With Care - an Observational Case-Control Study in Palestine

Validation of a Midwifery Model in Palestine

This study investigate if a midwife-led continuity model of care in Palestine, had impact on rural women's satisfaction with care through the continuum of antenatal, intrapartum and postnatal period.

Between 2013 and 2016 a midwife-led continuity model of care was implemented in parts of the Palestinian governmental health system, to improve maternal services to women in rural areas on the occupied West Bank. This study investigated if and how the model influenced women's satisfaction with care, through the continuum of the antenatal-, intrapartum- and postnatal period.

Using an observational case-control design to compare the midwife-led continuity model of care with regular maternity care. Women with singleton pregnancies, who had registered for antenatal care at a rural governmental clinic, were during the first six months after birth invited to answer a questionnaire containing 60 questions with a 7-points Likert scale, rating different aspects of satisfaction with care.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Residing in rural village
• Registered for pregnancy care at the villages governmental clinic
• With singleton pregnancy
• Gave birth the last one to six month

Exclusion Criteria:

• Residing in urban areas
• With multiple pregnancy
• Not registered for antenatal care at the local governmental clinic