Community-based maternity care from the view of Iranian midwives: A phenomenological study

BACKGROUND: Midwifery cares take place in diverse communities with different ethnics groups. Therefore, midwifery cares could be planned wisely and principally based on women's and their families’ changeable demands which focus on social and cultural issues. This qualitative study explored the midwives’ experiences of care in the community. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This qualitative study was conducted by descriptive phenomenological approach. The subjects, selected by purposive sampling, comprised 13 midwives employed in Isfahan, Iran. Semi-structured interviews were audio-taped, transcribed, and simultaneously analyzed through Colaizzi's method. RESULTS: With descriptive analysis of participants’ experiences, three main themes were explored (personal characteristics of the community midwife, social determinants of women's health, and achieving community-based midwifery skills). CONCLUSIONS: Knowledge of women's social status, gender inequality in health, and existence of social health risk factors for women in their community helps midwives to provide reproductive health care based on clients’ needs and demands. Therefore, midwives should enhance the quality of their care through integrating professional skills with a full understanding of the social context.