An integrative review of how midwives are screening and assessing for trauma in women within perinatal services.
<h4>Introduction</h4>There is a growing body of literature on the significance of trauma and abuse in the perinatal period but despite this, trauma exposure and abuse are often not recognised in maternity care settings. Evidence indicates that women experiencing mental distress during th...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2025-01-01
|
| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0327253 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1850076024834883584 |
|---|---|
| author | Fiona Callanan Carmel Bradshaw Teresa Tuohy Maria Noonan Sylvia Murphy Annmarie Grealish |
| author_facet | Fiona Callanan Carmel Bradshaw Teresa Tuohy Maria Noonan Sylvia Murphy Annmarie Grealish |
| author_sort | Fiona Callanan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <h4>Introduction</h4>There is a growing body of literature on the significance of trauma and abuse in the perinatal period but despite this, trauma exposure and abuse are often not recognised in maternity care settings. Evidence indicates that women experiencing mental distress during the perinatal period are frequently unidentified or inadequately supported. The purpose of this study was to conduct an integrative review on how midwives screen, assess, and respond to women with trauma histories in the perinatal period and to identify the challenges in providing trauma discussions, screening and assessment.<h4>Methods</h4>This integrative review followed Whittemore and Knafl's five-stage framework as it facilitates the inclusion of different methodological approaches to experimental research. Five electronic databases (PsycINFO, MEDLINE, CINAHL, ASSIA, and Web of Science), reference and citation lists were systematically searched from inception with no date, language or geographical limiters set owing to a dearth of research in this subject area. This review was performed and reported according to the PRISMA guidelines. The findings were analysed and synthesised using narrative synthesis.<h4>Findings</h4>Twenty-two studies met the inclusion criteria and were synthesised using narrative synthesis. Four main themes were identified: 1) Midwives difficulties in asking and discussing interpersonal trauma and abuse and their instinctive use of their observations skills to elicit information; 2) Screening tools to elicit history of interpersonal trauma; 3) Midwife's response to interpersonal discussions; 4) Training on 'daring to ask the questions' and Support on 'what should I do now'.<h4>Discussion</h4>Our findings demonstrate a deficit in trauma discussion, screening and assessment of trauma within the perinatal care, domestic violence being the exception. Interpersonal trauma is a significant public health concern that if left unrecognized may increase morbidity and mortality in both mothers and newborns. This study makes recommendations for urgent streamlined trauma discussions and specific training and supervision on trauma-informed care for all healthcare professions in their perinatal role using a whole systems approach. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-1c69342206d04709bb0cbf7324f6c2d2 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj-art-1c69342206d04709bb0cbf7324f6c2d22025-08-20T02:46:07ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032025-01-01207e032725310.1371/journal.pone.0327253An integrative review of how midwives are screening and assessing for trauma in women within perinatal services.Fiona CallananCarmel BradshawTeresa TuohyMaria NoonanSylvia MurphyAnnmarie Grealish<h4>Introduction</h4>There is a growing body of literature on the significance of trauma and abuse in the perinatal period but despite this, trauma exposure and abuse are often not recognised in maternity care settings. Evidence indicates that women experiencing mental distress during the perinatal period are frequently unidentified or inadequately supported. The purpose of this study was to conduct an integrative review on how midwives screen, assess, and respond to women with trauma histories in the perinatal period and to identify the challenges in providing trauma discussions, screening and assessment.<h4>Methods</h4>This integrative review followed Whittemore and Knafl's five-stage framework as it facilitates the inclusion of different methodological approaches to experimental research. Five electronic databases (PsycINFO, MEDLINE, CINAHL, ASSIA, and Web of Science), reference and citation lists were systematically searched from inception with no date, language or geographical limiters set owing to a dearth of research in this subject area. This review was performed and reported according to the PRISMA guidelines. The findings were analysed and synthesised using narrative synthesis.<h4>Findings</h4>Twenty-two studies met the inclusion criteria and were synthesised using narrative synthesis. Four main themes were identified: 1) Midwives difficulties in asking and discussing interpersonal trauma and abuse and their instinctive use of their observations skills to elicit information; 2) Screening tools to elicit history of interpersonal trauma; 3) Midwife's response to interpersonal discussions; 4) Training on 'daring to ask the questions' and Support on 'what should I do now'.<h4>Discussion</h4>Our findings demonstrate a deficit in trauma discussion, screening and assessment of trauma within the perinatal care, domestic violence being the exception. Interpersonal trauma is a significant public health concern that if left unrecognized may increase morbidity and mortality in both mothers and newborns. This study makes recommendations for urgent streamlined trauma discussions and specific training and supervision on trauma-informed care for all healthcare professions in their perinatal role using a whole systems approach.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0327253 |
| spellingShingle | Fiona Callanan Carmel Bradshaw Teresa Tuohy Maria Noonan Sylvia Murphy Annmarie Grealish An integrative review of how midwives are screening and assessing for trauma in women within perinatal services. PLoS ONE |
| title | An integrative review of how midwives are screening and assessing for trauma in women within perinatal services. |
| title_full | An integrative review of how midwives are screening and assessing for trauma in women within perinatal services. |
| title_fullStr | An integrative review of how midwives are screening and assessing for trauma in women within perinatal services. |
| title_full_unstemmed | An integrative review of how midwives are screening and assessing for trauma in women within perinatal services. |
| title_short | An integrative review of how midwives are screening and assessing for trauma in women within perinatal services. |
| title_sort | integrative review of how midwives are screening and assessing for trauma in women within perinatal services |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0327253 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT fionacallanan anintegrativereviewofhowmidwivesarescreeningandassessingfortraumainwomenwithinperinatalservices AT carmelbradshaw anintegrativereviewofhowmidwivesarescreeningandassessingfortraumainwomenwithinperinatalservices AT teresatuohy anintegrativereviewofhowmidwivesarescreeningandassessingfortraumainwomenwithinperinatalservices AT marianoonan anintegrativereviewofhowmidwivesarescreeningandassessingfortraumainwomenwithinperinatalservices AT sylviamurphy anintegrativereviewofhowmidwivesarescreeningandassessingfortraumainwomenwithinperinatalservices AT annmariegrealish anintegrativereviewofhowmidwivesarescreeningandassessingfortraumainwomenwithinperinatalservices AT fionacallanan integrativereviewofhowmidwivesarescreeningandassessingfortraumainwomenwithinperinatalservices AT carmelbradshaw integrativereviewofhowmidwivesarescreeningandassessingfortraumainwomenwithinperinatalservices AT teresatuohy integrativereviewofhowmidwivesarescreeningandassessingfortraumainwomenwithinperinatalservices AT marianoonan integrativereviewofhowmidwivesarescreeningandassessingfortraumainwomenwithinperinatalservices AT sylviamurphy integrativereviewofhowmidwivesarescreeningandassessingfortraumainwomenwithinperinatalservices AT annmariegrealish integrativereviewofhowmidwivesarescreeningandassessingfortraumainwomenwithinperinatalservices |