Support and continuity during the first 2 weeks postpartum

Objectives To investigate mothers’ perceived satisfaction with support from antenatal care (AC), postpartum care (PC) and child health care (CHC), respectively, during the first two weeks after childbirth. Design Cross‐sectional survey, mixed‐method design. Ethical issues The study was approved by the Regional Research and Ethics Committee at the Karolinska Insititutet, Sweden. Methods Data were collected using a study‐specific questionnaire that focused on mothers’ satisfaction with support from AC, PC and CHC during the first 2 weeks after childbirth. All mothers in Stockholm County (n = 546) who gave birth to a live infant during a 1‐week period in 2009 were invited to participate. Descriptive and logistic regression analyses and a content analysis were performed. Results A large discrepancy was found between levels of satisfaction with AC, PC and CHC. Mothers were satisfied with the support from CHC healthcare nurses, but missed follow‐up contact from AC and PC midwives. Nearly 40% of all mothers commented on insufficient support including that continuity in the chain of care was lacking and support for mothers’ physical and emotional health was insufficient. Delivery at