Data
Midwives' child-rearing support for immigrant women in early postpartum period
2025 Volume 39 Issue 1 Pages 202-212
Details
2025 Volume 39 Issue 1 Pages 202-212
Purpose
To examine midwives' child-rearing support for immigrant women in early postpartum period.
Methods
A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to 151 hospital midwives. The main questions asked regarded “supports for immigrant women in early postpartum period” and “difficulties in providing support for immigrant women in early postpartum period.” Statistics were calculated and analyzed based on midwives' clinical experience. The Mann–Whitney U test was used to compare clinical experiences. Participants were divided into two groups according to clinical experience: 10 years or less and 11 years or more. This study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee of Yokohama City University (Approval No.: F230800033).
Results
A total of 126 valid complete questionnaires were analyzed (89.4% response rate and 93.3% valid response rate). More than 80% of midwives provided the following supports to immigrant women in early postpartum period: “gathering information about life after discharge,” “using interpretation devices,” and “breastfeeding-related education that respects culture and religion.” However, more than 80% of midwives experienced difficulties in “linguistic communication” and “support in involving their families and key individuals.” Comparison results showed that midwives with 11 years' (or more) clinical experience practiced four supports significantly more than those with 10 years' (or less) clinical experience, including “cleaning care that respects culture and religion,” “dietary teaching that respects culture and religion,” “confirm and share knowledge regarding maternal and child health systems,” and so on.
Conclusion
The most frequently practiced supports were related to communication ingenuity, gathering information about life after discharge, and understanding different cultures and religions. However, midwives also experienced difficulties regarding these supports. This suggests the necessity of utilizing multilingual brochures and providing opportunities for midwives to share their experiences in supporting immigrant women in early postpartum period. Furthermore, this study suggests the need for sharing support experiences, particularly by experienced midwives, to raise the standards of midwifery practice.
