Humanized childbirth awareness-raising program among Tanzanian midwives and nurses: A mixed-methods study

Background In 2014, the WHO released a statement advocating greater respect for women in their report, “The prevention and elimination of disrespect and abuse during facility-based childbirth”. To address this issue, the Japan International Cooperation Agency established humanized childbirth care. However, this concept remains new in Tanzania. Objective To evaluate the acceptability of the humanized childbirth concept by Tanzanian nurses and midwives. Design Convergent mixed-methods design. Setting Continuing education held at Tanzania's capital city of Dar es Salaam. Participants The inclusion criteria were as follows: (1) registered nurses and midwives; (2) can comprehend English; (3) interested in humanized childbirth, (4) experienced in providing maternal and infant care or midwifery, and (5) attended the two-day program on humanized childbirth. Methods The program was evaluated quantitatively and qualitatively. The valid and reliable 23-item Women-Centered Care English version (WCC23E) questionnaire was used. Open-ended questions elicited the participants’ opinions about the program. Results The entire program was completed by 104 participants (average age, 40.9 years; SD, 9.13). Based on the quantitative data, the mean WCC23E post-test scores showed a significant increase compared with the mean WCC23E pre-test scores, indicating improvement in awareness. The qualitative data revealed three categories: “Gaining knowledge of humanized childbirth as a general dictionary term”, “Accepting and assimilating the concept of humanized childbirth in consideration of their practice”, and “Manifesting their voices of barriers and challenges towards humanized childbirth”. Conclusion The humanized childbirth awareness-raising program was useful for nurses and midwives in terms of favorably changing their perceptions of women-centered care