“Being on the edge, longing for the hand that shows the way”- A meta-synthesis of women's experiences of midwife support during the latent phase

Background

Women admitted to hospital during the latent phase are at higher risk of various interventions. Maternity care should enable informed decision-making and provide continuous support throughout the different labour phases.

Aim

To synthesise available research on women's experiences of labour ward midwife support during the latent phase.

Methods

A meta-synthesis as outlined by Walsh and Downe was conducted to generate a nuanced understanding of the findings from qualitative studies. A search using key words was undertaken in the following databases: PubMed, Cinahl, Scopus, Web of science and Psycinfo. Papers were included if published since 2014, in the English language and contained qualitative data addressing the study aim.

Findings

A total of nine studies were included. The result was divided into three themes: Telephone calls - being listened to or not, Video calls - seeing and being seen, In-person meeting – trying to pass the admission test. Women could feel either satisfied or dissatisfied after a phone call, video call, or visit to the labour ward; hence the form of contact was not the most significant factor, but how the midwife met and treated the woman.

Synthesis

Women who sought professional support, emphasized the need for a sensitive and individualized approach. The midwife—via phone, video, or in person—held the authority to decide on admission.

Conclusion

This meta-synthesis clearly highlights the gap in available care between the late stage of pregnancy and the active phase of labour, as well as the focus of midwives in labour ward care.