What do teenage mothers want from the Well Child / Tamariki Ora service?
Loading...
Supplementary material
Other Title
Authors
Skerman, Nicky
Author ORCID Profiles (clickable)
Degree
Master of Nursing
Grantor
Eastern Institute of Technology
Date
2010
Supervisors
Thompson, Shona
Manhire, Kathy
Manhire, Kathy
Type
Masters Thesis
Ngā Upoko Tukutuku (Māori subject headings)
Keyword
Hawke's Bay (N.Z.)
New Zealand
teenage mothers
teenage pregnancy
Māori
Well Child/Tamariki Ora
experiences
needs
attitudes
interviews
New Zealand
teenage mothers
teenage pregnancy
Māori
Well Child/Tamariki Ora
experiences
needs
attitudes
interviews
ANZSRC Field of Research Code (2020)
Citation
Skerman, N. (2010). What do teenage mothers want from the Well Child / Tamariki Ora service? (Unpublished document submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Nursing). Eastern Institute of Technology (EIT), New Zealand.
Abstract
New Zealand has one of the highest rates of teenage pregnancy in the world. The UNICEF Innocenti Report Card (2001) places New Zealand third in the table of teenage births in rich nations with 29.8 per 1000 births by women aged 15-19 years. The literature suggests that teenage mothers often struggle to cope with the demands of caring for a baby while making the transition from adolescence to adulthood. They require additional support from families, partners and services to achieve good health outcomes for themselves and their children but for many, becoming a mother is a positive event.
The Well Child /Tamariki Ora (WC/TO) service is provided at no cost to all children in New Zealand aged from birth to five years. This study aimed to discover what teenage mothers wanted from the WC/TO service and to explore whether the service was being effective in meeting the needs of teenage mothers in Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand. The investigation is a qualitative descriptive analysis based on data from two focus group interviews with a total of 12 participants who were teenage mothers aged between 16 and 19 years attending a secondary school teenage parent unit.
Giorgi’s (1970) method of analysis was used as a guide for the data analysis, from which four main themes were generated. These formed the discussion about the teenage mothers’ experiences of contact with the WC/TO service, the information they received, attitudes toward teenage mothers, and the need for respect and caring. A comparison of these findings with other research revealed many similarities regarding the needs of and attitudes towards teenage mothers.
Recommendations for making the WC/TO service one that teenage mothers want, and to ultimately improve health outcomes for their children, include: a smooth transition from the Lead Maternity Carer to a WC/TO service of their choice; good communication and relationship building; consistent and correct information including practical demonstrations; and nurses who are respectful and caring. It is suggested that a WC/TO nurse specialist involved with teenage mothers could be a positive step in this direction.
Publisher
Permanent link
Link to ePress publication
DOI
Copyright holder
Author
Copyright notice
All rights reserved