Höfundar:
Anna Margrét Gunnlaugsdóttir, Valgerður Lísa Sigurðardóttir
Background: Women with substance use problems are less likely to seek prenatal care than other groups. This is a vulnerable group where the interplay between health and social factors have a great influence and service providers’ understanding of their experiences is crucial.
Aim: To highlight the experience of pregnant women with substance use problems of prenatal care.
Method: A systematic review of qualitative studies was conducted. The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) meta-aggregation methodology was used to compile findings. The search was performed in PubMed, Cinahl, Scopus, and PsycINFO. Quality assessment of the studies was based on JBI-QARI Quality Assessment Scale. The JBI method and PRISMA statement were used to present the results and they were integrated with the „Matrix“ method, which provides an overview of included studies.
Findings: A total of 1,612 results were obtained, 813 published primary studies were screened and 15 studies met the criteria of inclusion. Sixty results and sub-themes were extracted which led to four categories: „complex emotions“, „service provider attitudes“, „challenges“ and „support“. The result was a composite experience called „world of experiences“ that summarizes the accumulated experience of pregnant women with substance use problems.
Conclusion: The findings indicate that pregnant women with substance use problems face a variety of barriers and experience complex feelings and negative attitudes from caregivers. Prenatal care is considered a certain risk factor due to fear of losing a child to child protection authorities. Professional support acted as motivation. Supporting women´s emotional challenges provides woman-centered care based on human dignity.