BACKGROUND:Women with a disability are one of the most disadvantaged groups in society.OBJECTIVE:To identify challenges and facilitators to accessing maternity services experienced by women with a physical disability during pregnancy, childbirth, and early motherhood.DESIGN:Literature review.FINDINGS:Challenges to accessibility included location and models of care, transport difficulties, and moving around the environment. Challenges to accommodation (health professionals’ adaptation to women’s needs) centered on lack of suitable health and parent education information. Challenges to acceptability were caused by poor knowledge and negative staff attitudes.IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE:Improving access to maternity services for women with a disability requires improved access to buildings, provision of sensitive antenatal classes, and development of health professionals’ knowledge and attitudes toward disability and pregnancy.
Aim
This paper presents a substantive theory that explains the transition to motherhood for women with a disability.
Background
Over the last thirty years, interest in exploring women's experiences of motherhood has increased. Extant theories on transition to motherhood originate, primarily, from the perspective and experiences of non‐disabled women with few exploring the phenomenon from the perspective and experiences of women with a disability. Those that do tend to focus on issues of accessibility, profiling the challenges that women with a disability encounter while accessing maternity services, attaining a maternal role and fulfilling the requirements of that role. Little is known about the experiences of women with a disability and their transition to motherhood and even less about the relationship of this process on the self.
Design
The study was conducted using a Strauss and Corbin approach to grounded theory.
Method
Individual interviews (n = 22) were conducted over 4 years (2008–2012). Women were interviewed during pregnancy and in the postnatal period. All interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, imported into Nvivo 8 and analysed using the constant comparative method.
Findings
The substantive theory that emerged from the study provides a conceptual framework clinicians can reference when counselling, assisting and facilitating women with a disability during their preparation for and transition to motherhood.
Conclusion
The substantive theory presented in this paper will increase clinicians' understanding of the process involved in the transition to motherhood for women with a disability.
Accessible summary• This article is about women with intellectual disability who have children.• The article tells the stories of four women with intellectual disabilities in Ireland who have children. It also explains how hard it was at times for them to work with Child and Family Services.• Many mothers with intellectual disabilities want to keep their babies.• Women with intellectual disabilities who are mothers should be provided with proper support to help them care for their children.
SummaryTraditionally, women with intellectual disabilities have faced challenges in accessing effective public health services and social service provision during pregnancy and early motherhood. The authors report on the experiences of four women with intellectual disabilities in their interactions with childcare services in the Republic of Ireland. They discuss the women's feelings of isolation, fears of losing their children and the disempowering effects of inadequate, ubiquitous responses adopted by many professionals and services. This study recommends a person-centred, rightsbased approach to meeting the needs of these women.
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