Interprofessional Teamwork to Promote Health: First-Time Parents' Experiences of a Combined Home Visit by Midwife and Child Health Care Nurse

Abstract

BackgroundTo achieve the requisites for a child's healthy development and to reduce health inequalities, it is important to promote health initiatives at an early stage in a child's life and to include the parents. Home visits by healthcare professionals have been found to have positive health effects for both the baby and the parents. From an extended home visit programme in Sweden, our aim was to illuminate first-time parents' experience of a home visit conducted by a midwife and a child health care nurse 1–2 weeks postnatal.MethodsData was collected by interviews (n = 13) with first-time parents. The transcribed texts were analyzed using inductive content analysis.ResultsThe participants' experiences could be understood from the two themes, A trust in the professionals and Feeling safe as a new parent. The participants experienced that the midwives and the child health care nurses complemented each other and appreciated to get knowledge and information from both professions. In their own home, they felt secured and relaxed, and the professionals could help them provide a safe home environment for the child.ConclusionBy meeting both professionals at the same time and in their own home, the participants experienced that the needs of the baby and their needs and concerns as new parents were included and supported.