Centre for Academic Child Health, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Canynge Hall, 39 Whatley Road, Bristol, BS8 2PS, UK.
School of Health and Social Wellbeing, University of the West of England, Bristol, UK.
BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2023 Mar 8;23(1):152. doi: 10.1186/s12884-023-05441-8.
The National Health Service (NHS) website gives guidance for pregnant women in England on foods/drinks to avoid or limit because of microbiological, toxicological or teratogenic hazards. These include, for example, some types of soft cheeses, fish/seafood and meat products. This website and midwives are trusted sources of information for pregnant women, but the ways in which midwives can be supported to provide clear and accurate information are unknown.
The aims were to: (1) determine midwives' accuracy of recall of information and confidence in delivering the guidance to women; (2) identify barriers to provision; (3) identify the ways in which midwives provide this information to women.
Registered Midwives practicing in England completed an online questionnaire. Questions included those on what information they provided and their confidence in delivering it, the ways they provided information on foods to avoid/limit, their recall of some of the guidance, and what resources they used. Ethics approval was given by the University of Bristol.
More than 10% of midwives (n = 122) were 'Not at all confident/Don't know' in providing advice about ten items, including game meat/gamebirds (42% and 43%, respectively), herbal teas (14%) and cured meats (12%). Only 32% correctly recalled overall advice on eating fish, and only 38% the advice on tinned tuna. The main barriers to provision were lack of time in appointments and lack of training. The most usual methods of disseminating information were verbal (79%) and signposting to websites (55%).
Midwives were often unconfident about their ability to provide accurate guidance, and recall on items tested was frequently mistaken. Delivery of guidance by midwives on foods to avoid or limit needs to be supported by appropriate training and access to resources, and sufficient time in appointments. Further research on barriers to the delivery and implementation of the NHS guidance is needed.
英国国民保健制度（NHS）网站为英格兰的孕妇提供了有关因微生物、毒理学或致畸危害而应避免或限制食用的食物/饮料的指导。这些包括，例如，某些类型的软奶酪、鱼类/海鲜和肉类产品。该网站和助产士是孕妇信赖的信息来源，但目前尚不清楚如何支持助产士提供清晰准确的信息。
目的是：（1）确定助产士对信息的回忆准确性和向女性提供指导的信心；（2）确定提供指导的障碍；（3）确定助产士向女性提供此信息的方式。
在英格兰执业的注册助产士完成了在线问卷调查。问题包括他们提供的信息以及对提供信息的信心、他们提供避免/限制食用食物信息的方式、他们对某些指导的回忆以及他们使用的资源。布里斯托大学已批准进行伦理审查。
超过 10%的助产士（n=122）在提供关于十种食物的建议时“一点也不自信/不知道”，包括野味/野禽（分别为 42%和 43%）、草药茶（14%）和腌制肉类（12%）。只有 32%的人正确回忆起有关吃鱼的总体建议，只有 38%的人回忆起关于罐头金枪鱼的建议。提供建议的主要障碍是预约时间不足和缺乏培训。传播信息最常用的方法是口头（79%）和指向网站（55%）。
助产士对自己提供准确指导的能力常常缺乏信心，对测试项目的回忆经常出错。需要通过适当的培训和获得资源以及在预约时提供足够的时间来支持助产士提供有关避免或限制食用的食物的指导。需要进一步研究提供和实施 NHS 指导的障碍。
