The childbirth experiences of Syrian refugee mothers living in Turkey: a qualitative study

ABSTRACT

Objective:The study aims to examine the childbirth experiences of Syrian refugee mothers living in Turkey.

Methods: This qualitative study was conducted with 12 mothers who had a vaginal birth and were assisted by midwives. The data were collected using an in-depth interview form and analyzed with the thematic analysis technique.

Results: The childbirth experiences of the mothers were grouped under two main headings as negative and positive experiences. “Negative childbirth experiences“ were divided into 4 main themes as “negative emotions experienced during childbirth, lack of effective communication due to the language barrier, difficulties experienced related to hospital policies and dissatisfaction with midwives“. “Positive birth experiences“, were categorized under three main themes as “satisfaction with the midwife, finding the country safe to give birth, and mother’ s positive attitude towards birth process“. The mothers were satisfied with “the attitudes and behaviors of the midwives and their professional practices“, and the positive attitude of mothers towards birth in religious and cultural terms contributed to the positive birth perception.

Conclusion: Refugee mothers were found to have both positive and negative childbirth experiences. Individualized, empathic communication-based, culturally sensitive and evidence-based care may contribute to the positive childbirth experiences of refugee women.

KEYWORDS:

• Refugee
• vaginal birth
• birth experience
• qualitative research
• midwife
• Turkey

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).