A nursing theory For facility-based antenatal care

The purpose of this book is to show the analysis of nurse - client interaction processes within the context of antenatal nursing in a rural context, and how the emerging concepts were used to generate a substantive theory of the processes involved in influencing the decision of mothers for skilled attendant delivery. This was a qualitative study, using Grounded Theory methodology. Analysis of concepts from observations of antenatal clinic sessions, nurse perspectives and client perspectives led to the resultant "Theory of nurse-client interactions for childbirth preparedness". The theory reveals that Nurse-client interaction processes are influenced by the complex rural context within which care is given yet, the nurses are ill equipped to help the clients address the contextual challenges. This impacts on the core purpose of activities in antenatal care, which is to prepare the antenatal mother for safe delivery by a skilled attendant. The theory provides a tool to guide antenatal nursing in rural health facilities and in similar contexts.