Postpartum hemorrhage  Annotated Bibliography

Postpartum hemorrhage  Annotated Bibliography

Briley, A. L., Silverio, S. A., Singh, C., Sandall, J., & Bewley, S. (2021). “It’s like a bus, going downhill, without a driver”: A qualitative study of postpartum hemorrhage experienced by women, their birth partners, and healthcare professionals. Women and Birth, 34(6), e599-e607. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wombi.2020.12.002

Postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) constitutes one of the major factors that increase the rate of maternal mortality and morbidity. Consequently, healthcare policymakers have developed multiple strategies to address the issue of PPH in the strive to reduce maternal mortality and morbidity in society. However, limited data exist concerning the experience of women, their partners, and healthcare professionals during a PPH situation. Briley et al. (2021) conducted a qualitative study to investigate how PPH is experienced by women, their birth partners, and caregivers in the healthcare setting. The study involved analyzing the experiences of 9 women, 4 birth partners, and 9 healthcare professionals concerning their experiences of PPH (Briley et al., 2021). The participants were randomly selected and interviewed concerning their experiences within two weeks of a PPH. the information collected during the interviews was thematically analyzed to facilitate the development of a conclusion. The study found that most women have limited information concerning PPH, its implications, and how it can be avoided (Briley et al., 2021). Specific healthcare professionals’ knowledge concerning PPH influenced their response and risk communication capabilities. Therefore, the study identifies the importance of equipping both healthcare professionals and women with information concerning PPH as a strategy to reduce its associated implications.

The study identifies key factors that influence PPH risk, including knowledge specific to PPH, the nature of responses to PPH among healthcare professionals, and the quality of communication between healthcare professionals and women in labor. The study found that women with greater knowledge of PPH were more capable of implementing self-care strategies to minimize its severity and health implications (Briley et al., 2021). Similarly, healthcare professionals who possess advanced knowledge concerning PPH are more capable of providing adequate care, which instills confidence among women and their birth partners. Therefore, the study presents useful insight into the relationship between women’s and healthcare professionals’ knowledge and the risk of PPH. Additionally, the study infers that healthcare professionals’ quality of care and response strategies influence women’s risk of PPH (Briley et al., 2021). When healthcare professionals respond to women’s needs attentively, they minimize their exposure to situations that may increase their risk of PPH. Also, maintaining healthy communication between women, their birth partners, and healthcare professionals was observed to facilitate the clinicians’ response to the women’s care needs (Briley et al., 2021). Consequently, quality communication helps to address factors that increase the risk of PPH, which increases woman’s safety in the long run. Therefore, the study urges healthcare policymakers to prioritize PPH-specific knowledge, communication, and clinicians’ response to women’s needs to improve their experiences and reduce health risks associated with PPH.

The study utilized an effective strategy to develop a conclusion regarding the research question. The various participant groups involved in the event were interviewed about their experiences. Such a research process allowed for substantial data triangulation, which helped develop realistic conclusions about the research question. Moreover, data analyzed in the study included a broad range of blood loss, which allowed the researcher to capture the impact of PPH at different levels. However, the study used a small sample to develop a generalized conclusion concerning the population in the study. While the implications of PPH often vary among women, the study only analyzed the experiences of 9 women to develop its conclusions. Using such a small sample may have attracted biased conclusions as to the variability of information collected increases. Therefore, future studies relating to women’s experiences of PPH ought to involve a larger sample.