Abstract
Background: The Internet has become an increasingly popular source for healthcare information. Previous work suggests that pregnant women are accessing and using Internet based information to influence their care and management (Maijala et al, 2003; Pandey et al, 2003). This paper will provide
illuminative data on this subject.
Aim: To elicit the extent and nature of pregnant women’s use of the Internet from a midwifery perspective.
Method: To achieve the stated aim an exploratory descriptive design was selected using an online questionnaire to collect data. An international sample of midwives was recruited between March and July 2006 using midwifery e-discussion groups. Members who had direct contact with pregnant women were invited to share their experiences of working with women who presented them with information gleamed from the Internet. Ethical approval was granted from the local Office for Research Ethics Committee (OREC). Data was collected using
a php Easy Survey Package and downloaded into SPSS for analysis. Qualitative data was analysed using NVivo.
Results:
A total of 303 midwives (261 qualified midwives and 42 student midwives) accessed and completed the questionnaire. Eighty-nine per cent of the respondents (n=271) concurrent session abstracts – 98 were aware of an increase in Internet use among pregnant women with 86% (n=260)
having had experience of pregnant woman discussing information from the Internet in the clinical area. The majority of midwives (67% n=174) considered the information affected the woman’s decision making. Qualitative data
provided illustrations of how the Internet can influence women’s choice and management of care in pregnancy.
Discussion/Conclusions:
According to midwives pregnant women are using the Internet as an accessible source for health to inform decision making in pregnancy. This paper underlines the need to understand the information seeking behaviour of pregnant women and subsequent choices in their care. The Internet is an intriguing source for women, midwives and researchers.
illuminative data on this subject.
Aim: To elicit the extent and nature of pregnant women’s use of the Internet from a midwifery perspective.
Method: To achieve the stated aim an exploratory descriptive design was selected using an online questionnaire to collect data. An international sample of midwives was recruited between March and July 2006 using midwifery e-discussion groups. Members who had direct contact with pregnant women were invited to share their experiences of working with women who presented them with information gleamed from the Internet. Ethical approval was granted from the local Office for Research Ethics Committee (OREC). Data was collected using
a php Easy Survey Package and downloaded into SPSS for analysis. Qualitative data was analysed using NVivo.
Results:
A total of 303 midwives (261 qualified midwives and 42 student midwives) accessed and completed the questionnaire. Eighty-nine per cent of the respondents (n=271) concurrent session abstracts – 98 were aware of an increase in Internet use among pregnant women with 86% (n=260)
having had experience of pregnant woman discussing information from the Internet in the clinical area. The majority of midwives (67% n=174) considered the information affected the woman’s decision making. Qualitative data
provided illustrations of how the Internet can influence women’s choice and management of care in pregnancy.
Discussion/Conclusions:
According to midwives pregnant women are using the Internet as an accessible source for health to inform decision making in pregnancy. This paper underlines the need to understand the information seeking behaviour of pregnant women and subsequent choices in their care. The Internet is an intriguing source for women, midwives and researchers.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Royal College of Nursing of the United Kingdom Research Society |
| Subtitle of host publication | The 2007 International Nursing Research Conference, College of Medicine, Dentistry and Nursing, Dundee |
| Place of Publication | RCN Events |
| Pages | 97 |
| Number of pages | 98 |
| Publication status | Published (in print/issue) - 4 May 2007 |
| Event | Royal College of Nursing of the United Kingdom Research Society The 2007 International Nursing Research Conference - Caird Hall, , Dundee, Scotland, United Kingdom Duration: 1 May 2007 → 4 May 2007 Conference number: 8.7.3 file:///C:/Users/briege/Downloads/2007-research-conference-programme.pdf |
Conference
| Conference | Royal College of Nursing of the United Kingdom Research Society The 2007 International Nursing Research Conference |
|---|---|
| Country/Territory | United Kingdom |
| City | Dundee, Scotland |
| Period | 1/05/07 → 4/05/07 |
| Internet address |
Keywords
- Midwives perception
- Internet
- influence
- Women
- Decision Making
- Pregnancy
