Explaining the concept of self-care in Iranian pregnant women: A qualitative study

Self-care is one of the most appropriate approaches to achieving successful pregnancy outcomes. This study aimed to explain the concept of self-care in low–risk pregnancies based on the experiences of pregnant mothers and health care providers. The present study was qualitative research of contractual content analysis. Purposeful sampling with maximum Variation was done among pregnant women under the care of Tehran University of Medical Sciences health centers in 2020. In-depth and semi-structured individual interviews were used to collect data, which was saturated after 14 interviews with pregnant women and health care providers. Data analysis was done using the approach of Zhang and Wildmouth (2009).

The content analysis of the interviews led to the extraction of three main categories of comprehensive care, barriers, and facilitators of self-care, as well as eleven sub-categories for the concept of self-care in pregnancy. According to the results of this study, to improve self-care behaviors in pregnant women, it is necessary to pay attention to the facilitators of self-care, remove barriers by the health system, and establish effective communication between health care providers and pregnant mothers.