Adolescent Pregnancy and Parenthood: A Qualitative Study Examining Nurses' Perspectives.

Abstract

Objective: It is a well-established fact that the utilization of health services by pregnant adolescents is associated with the views and care provided by nurses. This study, aiming to reveal the perspectives of nurses working in a state hospital in Turkey on adolescent pregnancies and parenthood, contributes valuable insights for designing interventions to improve adolescent pregnancy outcomes.

Design: This research was carried out using the "individual in-depth interview" data collection technique as a phenomenological study, which is one of the qualitative research methods.

Sample: The study included 15 health professionals who met the criteria to participate. The data were analyzed in six stages using a thematic approach.

Results: It emerged in relation to the feelings of the adolescent; the situations encountered, the factors affecting the awareness of being an adolescent pregnant and a parent, the difficulties encountered in care, social pressure, and touching the adolescent's life.

Conclusions: It was observed that nurses and midwives had mixed feelings towards adolescent pregnant women and parents and reflected these feelings in their caregiving styles.