Adolescent mothers: perceptions related to prenatal care and childbirth

Abstract

Introduction: Teenage pregnancy is considered a public health problem worldwide. This population needs to be assisted in a unique way by health professionals because they often experience greater sense of insecurity concerning the obstetric time and their own future. Objective: To verify the perception of adolescent mothers about the care received by the health team
during the prenatal care and childbirth. Methods: This study was conducted with a qualitative approach. Adolescents aged from 12 to 19 years, primiparous with vaginal delivery of a single fetus to term and who were in the immediate postpartum period in a public hospital in the city of Jataí (GO) were included. The participants responded to two guiding questions related to the care received during the prenatal care and obstetric labor. The responses were recorded and then transcribed. The speech analysis was made according to the Content Analysis technique in which the reports were organized in categories. Results: We interviewed 11 mothers with a mean age of 16.5 years. The reports were divided into two general categories and, within each of these, specific categories have emerged. The specific category “satisfaction” was the one that appeared most frequently in the reports about the service in prenatal care and the obstetric labor. Conclusion: The teenagers considered the care and assistance received during the prenatal and the labor as satisfactory, due to guidance and attention provided by the health team. However, there was an evidence of situations which there was an obstetric violence, with a dehumanized and humiliating treatment.