Ngozichika Obiageli Okeke* and Roinnah Ngunyulu
Introduction: Not-withstanding the reality and the crucial stage of postnatal health for women and infants, maternal care guidelines are poorly implemented in South Africa, especially during the postnatal period. Midwives contribute significantly to the health care delivery system by rendering postnatal care services to women and their newborns. Nonetheless, their views are sometimes not acknowledged. This study aimed to identify the perceptions of midwives as regards implementing South African maternal care guidelines during the postnatal phase. Maternal care in postnatal health is a central role carried out by midwives in any society, particularly in the medical and health sectors. Beautiful as this may be, there are basic guidelines that need to be followed in implementing maternal care in postnatal health by Midwives. Midwives are undoubtedly essential members of the health care team, and their participation in implementing maternal care recommendations for postpartum services may contribute to reducing avoidable mortality and enhancing health outcomes. This study investigated midwives perceptions of implementing maternal care guidelines in postnatal health in KwaZulu-Natal.
Methods: The study adopted a qualitative research method. The study was carried out in KwaZulu-Natal province. Participants for the study were selected across some district hospitals in KZN using a purposive sampling method. The interview method was used to collect data from the selected respondents, who are predominantly midwives. In total, 17 midwives were interviewed: 15 were midwives, while two midwives managers were also interviewed. A comparative analysis of emergent themes was done.
Results: The study shows a wide gap between policy formulation and implementation in the healthcare sector. The study revealed the poor performance of Maternal Care Guidelines in the Postnatal Health sector, which requires policy review.
Conclusion: The government should pay serious attention to midwives and the Implementation of South Africa’s Maternal Care guidelines in Postnatal Health.
Published Date: 2023-06-28; Received Date: 2023-05-31
