The effect of in-person and virtual prenatal care education of the spouses of primiparous women on the father and mother’s attachment to infant: a quasi-experimental and controlled study

Abstract

Introduction Considering the important role of education in promoting parents’ attachment to the infant, temporal and spatial limitations, and the need to use new educational methods for spouses’ participation in childbirth preparation classes, the present study was conducted to compare the effect of in-person and virtual prenatal care education of the spouses of primiparous women on the father and mother’s attachment to the infant. Methods This is a quasi-experimental clinical trial that was conducted on primiparous pregnant women referring to three prenatal clinics in Tehran, Iran. Sampling was done by continuous method and pregnant women were divided into three groups of face-to-face education (n = 28), virtual education (n = 31), and control (n = 29). The content of the training program in the virtual and face-to-face groups was similar, which was presented in 4 sessions. At 18–20 weeks of gestation, demographic characteristics and pregnancy records were obtained from the samples, and 12 weeks after the delivery, maternal postnatal attachment scale, and postnatal paternal-infant attachment questionnaire were completed. Both intention-to-treat analysis and per-protocol analysis were performed. Results There was a statistically significant difference between the two groups of in-person education and control, and also virtual education and control for both intention-to-treat and per-protocol analysis (p < 0.05). However, no statistically significant difference was found between the two groups of in-person and virtual education. Results showed a large and medium effect size between the two groups of in-person education and control, and virtual education and control in terms of father-infant attachment score, respectively. There was also no statistically significant difference between the three groups after the educational intervention in terms of the mother-infant attachment score for both intention-to-treat and per-protocol analysis. Conclusion Considering that education by both in-person and virtual methods had the same effect on improving the score of father-infant attachment, it is suggested that to increase the participation of spouses of pregnant women in the process of prenatal care, the spouses of pregnant women should have the option of virtual education in addition to in-person training. Trial registration TCTR.ir TCTR20200515011. Registered on May 12, 2020.

Women's experiences of online antenatal education: An integrative literature review

“…The 12 publications included primary research papers: one qualitative (Arcia et al., 2019); six quantitative (Chen et al., 2022; Ciochan et al., 2022; Grimes et al., 2014; Kovala et al., 2016; Kuciel et al., 2021; Wright et al., 2020); four quasi‐experimental (Doaltabadi & Amiri‐Farahani, 2021; O'Sullivan et al., 2019; Shahid & Johnson, 2018; Tsai et al., 2018); and one randomized controlled trial (Krusche et al., 2018) from eight countries in total (Australia; Canada; China; Iran; Poland; Taiwan; United Kingdom; United States of America). All twelve studies that met the inclusion/exclusion criteria were assessed to be of high methodological quality and had addressed potential bias in design, conduct and analysis.…”

“…For women who had accessed online antenatal education, flexibility of this mode was reported as a key benefit that enabled improved accessibility to involve partners and additional family members, accommodate for sickness, isolation and more complex social situations (Arcia et al., 2019; Chen et al., 2022; Doaltabadi & Amiri‐Farahani, 2021; Krusche et al., 2018; O'Sullivan et al., 2019; Shahid & Johnson, 2018; Tsai et al., 2018). Women living in regional areas, or internationally, who had appropriate internet connectivity, were generally able to engage more readily (O'Sullivan et al., 2019; Shahid & Johnson, 2018).…”

“…Honouring the heterogeneity of women and their support people to better understand their individual needs will optimize the development of future comprehensive virtual packages with potential improvement in the quality of antenatal care (Arcia et al., 2019; Chen et al., 2022; Tsai et al., 2018; Wright et al., 2020). Current challenges with face‐to‐face antenatal education classes, such as time constraints, equity in resources and space, and consistency in content and delivery, are more likely to be overcome in virtual education (Doaltabadi & Amiri‐Farahani, 2021). With capacity to reach a much broader captured audience, online platforms have been shown to afford ongoing ‘real‐time’ developments and responsiveness in curriculum and content to best suit the dynamic needs of the user and context (Arcia et al., 2019; Chen et al., 2022; Shahid & Johnson, 2018).…”

“…Interestingly, whilst many women viewed Newborn Safety and Breastfeeding as 'very important', many 4. Doaltabadi and Amiri-Farahani (2021).…”

“…It is worth considering that didactic teaching methods in large face-to-face classes can be reductive and generalized(Brady & Lalor, 2017). Online antenatal education has capacity to facilitate an individualized and responsive platform for women to engage with over the childbirth continuum(Artieta-Pinedo et al, 2018;Chedid et al, 2018;Doaltabadi & Amiri- Farahani, 2021;Tsai et al, 2018). In the absence of any rigorous evaluation, it is unclear if current online platforms are adequately meeting the needs of birthing women and midwives, alike.The National Nursing and Midwifery Digital Health CapabilityFramework considers digital health to be a critical component of contemporary healthcare (Australian Digital Health Agency, 2020).…”