PROBLEM SUMMARY
Good support, in which the midwife plays an important role, before, during and after pregnancy is of great importance. The focus on woman-centred care emphasises a holistic approach and the relationship between midwife and (future) mother, which has a positive impact on the quality of perinatal care. Based on the importance of the relationship, the (pregnant) woman must be able to make an informed choice about who will attend to her and within which care model.
Currently, there is an increase in interventions durante partu such as instrumental deliveries and secondary sections. There is convincing evidence that midwife-led care contributes to the reduction of interventions. The majority of the work in Flanders is based on medical models. With current (inter)national initiatives to develop and implement midwife-led care, it is relevant to involve key stakeholders, such as women, midwives, in a preliminary study to gain insights into how they view such a transition within Flemish birth care. This transition would entail a shift from the medical model to a biopsychosocial model. In that way, recommendations can be formulated to support the dialogue towards effective, constructive and valuable methods and strategies to support the development and implementation of midwifery-led care in Flanders.
RESEARCH QUESTION
What aspects are relevant from the perspective of women and midwives to realise midwife-led care in Flanders?
METHODOLOGY
A mixed-methods study with an integrated approach will be set up. The strength of this project lies in the combination of empirical and integrated data collection. Different research methods are combined from an exploratory, descriptive and advisory point of view. Information will be gathered from the scientific literature as well as from midwives and mothers, in a qualitative and quantitative manner by means of surveys and focus groups.
, click 
, click