Ojo, Adegboyega and Rizun, Nina and Walsh, Grace S. and Przychodzen, Wojciech and Mashinchi, Mona Isazad and Foley, Conor and Rohde, Daniela (2023) Building confidence and trust in Ireland's National Maternity Services Workforce –What matters most and how? Health Policy, 138. p. 104947. ISSN 0168-8510

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Abstract

National surveys on care experiences are increasingly adopted as regulatory mechanisms for improving care quality and increasing public trust in healthcare services. Based on data collected as part of Ireland’s 2020 National Maternity Experience Survey, this study investigates care-related factors that contribute most to confidence and trust in the professional workforce (or carers) within Irish maternity services. The survey covered the full spectrum of maternity care and received 3,206 responses which were analysed using structural equation modelling. Results show that trust in carers may be enhanced through greater attention to the quality of interpersonal aspects of maternity care in a few core areas. We found that factors related to dignity and respect (β=0.270), involvement in decision-making (β=0.186), pain management (β=0.172), and communication (β=0.151) are core determinants of confidence and trust in the professional workforce of maternity services. Perceived quality of care in these four aspects increased on average, with the women’s age. Women under 29 rated their experiences in these areas as significantly lower than the average. Women with a disability also rated their experiences significantly lower than average in three core areas. Our results suggest that trustworthy, equitable, and high-quality maternity care requires ongoing development of interpersonal skills within the maternity services professional workforce particularly in caring for younger women (under 29 years) and those with a disability.

Item Type:	Article
Keywords:	Maternity services; Trust in maternity services; Women-centred care; Equitable healthcare; Trust in the maternity care professionals;
Academic Unit:	Faculty of Social Sciences > Research Institutes > Innovation Value Institute, IVI
Item ID:	18728
Identification Number:	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healthpol.2023.104947
Depositing User:	Grace Walsh
Date Deposited:	11 Jul 2024 14:22
Journal or Publication Title:	Health Policy
Publisher:	Elsevier
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	Publisher
Use Licence:	This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available here

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