A joint University of Queensland and Queensland University of Technology study has found that women who give birth in Queensland public hospitals are more likely to be confident new parents than those who receive private maternity care.
The study, which surveyed 6400 new mothers, found women in public maternity care were more likely to receive after-hospital care, which caused a boost in maternal satisfaction.
QUT Associate Professor Yvette Miller said post-birth care differed greatly between the public and private sectors.
Associate Professor Yvette Miller from QUT’s Faculty of Health. Photo: supplied
“We found that compared to women in a private hospital, women who birthed in the public sector had six times the odds of being telephoned by a care provider, 34 times the odds of being visited at home and five times the odds of visiting a GP within 10 days of being at home,” said Professor Miller in a statement.
New mothers in private Queensland hospitals usually stay for four nights, while mothers in the public sector generally stay for two to three nights.
However, Professor Miller said the longer stay did not affect postnatal satisfaction.
“We found that increased length of hospital stay does not compensate for lack of contact following discharge,” she said.
The study, which was co-authored by Wendy Brodribb, Maria Zadoroznj, Michelle Nesic and Sue Kruske, concluded that women should have the expectation of seeing a health care professional in the first 10 days of being home with their babies.
“Providing women with details of a person they can contact 24 hours a day if they have concerns will improve both satisfaction and confidence and is a simple and inexpensive first step to implement,” read the study.