فهرست نشریات علمی دسترسی آزاد ایران

BACKGROUND: Prenatal education provides opportunities for health promotion of healthy behaviorsand risk reduction. Quality and coherence with prenatal health promotion best practices depend onan individual class instructor. The objective of our study was to document the experiences, practices,and perceptions of our diverse Ottawa, Canada community of prenatal educators.MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this quantitative, mixed methods e‑survey conducted in Ottawa,Canada, prenatal educators were asked to describe their prenatal class settings, delivery formats,content, perceptions of pregnant women, and recommendations. Data were analyzed by descriptivestatistics and thematic content analysis.RESULTS: Respondents included public health nurses and a diverse group of “allied childbirtheducators” (ACE). Topics related to pregnancy, labor, and postpartum issues were well addressed;however, established and emerging risks to pregnancy were omitted. Nurses were more likely todiscuss lifestyle risks to pregnancy and general prenatal health promotion, whereas ACE respondentsemphasized informed consent and individualized counseling. Women marginalized by social exclusionincluding Indigenous women, immigrants, and women with disabilities were perceived as missingfrom prenatal educational settings.CONCLUSIONS: Heterogeneity of prenatal education provides opportunities for collaboration;however, established and emerging risk factors to pregnancy are neglected topics. Addressing theneeds of diverse communities of pregnant women requires timely, evidence‑based, inclusive, andculturally safe delivery of prenatal health promotion.