Health-related quality of life measured by SF-36 among postdelivery mothers attending maternal and child health clinic in Eastern Nepal: a cross-sectional study.

Assessing health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and its associated factors is essential for providing adequate healthcare and developing necessary interventions in women postdelivery. This study intended to find out the HRQoL score and related factors among women postdelivery in Nepal. Methodology: This was a cross-sectional study using nonprobability sampling conducted at a Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Clinic in Nepal. The study participants were 129 women postdelivery to 12 months who visited the MCH Clinic from 2 September 2018 to 28 September 2018. Outcome measures were sociodemographic, clinical indicators, obstetric indicators, and their relation with the overall HRQoL score of postdelivery mothers using the Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) Version 1. Results: Of 129 respondents, 68.22% were in the 21-30 age group, 36.43% were upper caste, 88.37% were Hindu, 87.60% were literate, 81.39% were homemakers, 53.49% with income less than 12 months, 88.37% had family support, and 50.39% with vaginal deliveries. HRQoL was significantly more in employed women (P=0.037), those with family support (P=0.003), and those who had a cesarean section (P=0.02) and wanted pregnancy (P=0.040). Conclusion: HRQoL in women postdelivery can be influenced by employment status, family support, type of delivery, and desirability of pregnancy.

Experiences of nurses providing maternity care in a public hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal: A qualitative study.

Maternity service providers have struggled to provide high-quality services to women and newborns during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic which has substantially impacted health systems and disrupted maternity services globally. Nepal is a resources-limited country that reported a significant impact of the pandemic on maternal health services. It is therefore important to understand better the perspective of health care professionals in this context. This study intends to explore the experiences of nurses providing maternity care in the public sector during the COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal. A qualitative study using a phenomenological design was conducted. Altogether ten nurses working in maternity services were selected using purposive sampling technique. Data were collected by face-to-face in-depth interviews using a semi-structured interview guide. Thematic analysis was conducted using Clarke and Braun 2006 technique. The findings of the study were organized into codes, sub-themes and themes. The six themes identified were fear of COVID-19 at work, challenges at work, changes at work and services, motivations to work, stigma due to COVID-19, and impact on services. Participants described how maternity services could not be stopped during the pandemic. They had experienced decreased utilization of antenatal services as a consequence of 'lockdown' thereby leading to an increase in maternal and neonatal mortality. Respondents reported ineffective human resource management compromising the quality of care. The professional responsibility to cope with adverse circumstances and serve society is a major source of motivation that health workers relied upon to get them through the pandemic period. A wide range of challenges were faced by service providers during the pandemic which requires action and support of all levels of government, institutions and society-at-large to assure the continued provision of safe maternity care during such a protracted period of challenging work.