Using co-design to explore how midwives can support the emerging mother-infant relationship during the early postnatal period : Protocol for a mixed methods study

Journal article


Stoodley, Cathy, McKellar, Lois, Ziaian, Tahereh, Steen, Mary, Gwilt, Ian and Fereday, Jennifer. (2021). Using co-design to explore how midwives can support the emerging mother-infant relationship during the early postnatal period : Protocol for a mixed methods study. JMIR Research Protocols. 10(6), p. Article e29770. https://doi.org/10.2196/29770
AuthorsStoodley, Cathy, McKellar, Lois, Ziaian, Tahereh, Steen, Mary, Gwilt, Ian and Fereday, Jennifer
Abstract

Background:
The postnatal period can be a challenging time for women, with mothers experiencing a range of emotions. As a woman transitions to motherhood, she adjusts to a new sense of self and forms a new relationship with her infant. Becoming a mother is a complex cognitive and social process that is unique for each woman and is influenced and shaped by culture. The emerging mother-infant relationship is a significant factor in maternal well-being and infant development, with the bond between the mother and her baby being critical to the development of secure attachment. It has been recognized that the strength of this relationship is the main predictor of how well a child will do throughout life. There has been a global focus on the importance of the first 1000 days, with Australia identifying this as a national priority. Midwives are ideally placed to support mothers during the development of the mother-infant relationship, providing care through the early postnatal period, which has been identified as a sensitive period for the development of the mother-infant relationship.

Objective:
The aim of this study is to explore how midwives can support the emerging mother-infant relationship in the context of cultural diversity and develop an appropriate co-designed intervention in the early postnatal period.

Methods:
This study will use a mixed method approach, specifically the exploratory sequential design (intervention development variant). This study will be undertaken in 3 phases: 1 qualitative phase, which is followed by 2 quantitative phases. Phase 1 will include a scoping review to explore interventions that have influenced the development of the mother-infant relationship, and then, interviews will be undertaken with women exploring their early experiences of motherhood, followed by 3 co-design workshops. The workshops will engage with multilevel stakeholder representatives where, through partnership and participation, they will propose and develop an intervention to support the emerging mother-infant relationship. Phase 2 will develop and pilot 2 purpose-designed evaluation surveys to evaluate the co-designed intervention from the perspective of both mothers and midwives. Phase 3 will implement and evaluate the co-designed intervention using pre- and postmeasures and feedback from the purpose-designed surveys.

Results:
Phase 1 has commenced and is expected to be completed by August 2021. Phase 2 is expected to be completed by September 2021, with phase 3 commencing in October 2021. The study will be completed by March 2023.

Conclusions:
The results of this study will be shared with a variety of audiences and will contribute to the body of knowledge on the mother-infant relationship, potentially improving the understanding of this relationship for women and midwives. This may result in improved strategies for care, with mothers benefiting from enhanced experience and satisfaction during the early postnatal period.

Keywordsmother-infant relationship; mother-infant relations; mother-infant bonding; infant development; midwife; early postnatal; co-design; mixed methods
Year2021
JournalJMIR Research Protocols
Journal citation10 (6), p. Article e29770
PublisherJournal of Medical Internet Research
ISSN1929-0748
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.2196/29770
PubMed ID34110301
Scopus EID2-s2.0-85107870590
PubMed Central IDPMC8241434
Open accessPublished as ‘gold’ (paid) open access
Page range1-12
Publisher's version
License
File Access Level
Open
Output statusPublished
Publication dates
Online10 Jun 2021
Publication process dates
Accepted22 Apr 2021
Deposited02 Jul 2025
Additional information

© Cathy Stoodley, Lois McKellar, Tahereh Ziaian, Mary Steen, Ian Gwilt, Jenny Fereday. Originally published in JMIR Research Protocols (https://www.researchprotocols.org), 10.06.2021. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work, first published in JMIR Research Protocols, is properly cited. The complete bibliographic information, a link to the original publication on https://www.researchprotocols.org, as well as this copyright and license information must be included.

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