Effects of Postnatal Home-Based Education on Primiparous Women's Perceived Self-Efficacy in Neonatal Care

Introduction: During the postnatal period, mothers face different challenges such as learning how to care for their infants and how to fulfill their own parental roles. Aim: To evaluate the effects of postnatal home-based education on primiparous women's perceived self-efficacy in neonatal care. Materials and Methods: This quasi-experimental study was done on 100 primiparous women who referred to healthcare centers in Zahedan, Iran, to receive routine postnatal care services. Women were conveniently recruited and randomly allocated to an experimental (n=50) and a control (n=50) group. A demographic questionnaire and Reece's Parent Expectations Survey were used for data collection both before and six weeks after the intervention. Women in the experimental group received routine postnatal care services as well as postnatal home-based neonatal care education in three sessions. However, women in the control group solely received routine postnatal care services. The SPSS software (v. 20.0) was used and for analysis of covariance, paired and independent-sample t, Chisquare tests were used. Results: Mean age in the experimental and the control groups were 22.82 +/- 4.56 and 21.02 +/- 5.20 years respectively. After the intervention, the average increase in the score of perceived self-efficacy in the experimental group (44.84 +/- 13.50) was significantly greater than the control group (10.90 +/- 8.45; p < 0.0001). Conclusion: Postnatal home-based education improves primiparous women's perceived self-efficacy in neonatal care. Home-based educational programs are recommended for the improvement of maternal and infantile outcomes in postnatal period.