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Table 4 Scale descriptives and psychometric properties

From: A questionnaire to measure women’s experiences with pregnancy, birth and postnatal care: instrument development and assessment following a national survey in Norway

Scale and items

Item number

Meana

SD

Non-response/“Don’t know”/NA (%)

Scale internal consistency (Cronbach’s α)

Item-total correlation coefficient

Test-retest reliability (ICC, N = 123)

Check-ups by a general practitioner

 

76.3

21.6

20.3

0.926

 

0.833

 Did the general practitioner treat you politely and with respect?

21

4.3

0.8

  

0.796

 

 Did the general practitioner spend enough time at the visits?

22

3.8

1.1

  

0.774

 

 Did you find that the general practitioner was open to your questions?

23

4.1

1.0

  

0.879

 

 Did you find that the general practitioner cared about you?

24

4.0

1.0

  

0.867

 

 Did you have confidence in the general practitioner’s professional competence?

25

4.0

1.0

  

0.755

 

Check-ups by a midwife

 

88.0

15.5

14.3

0.918

 

0.662

 Did the midwife treat you politely and with respect?

12

4.6

0.6

  

0.790

 

 Did the midwife spend enough time at the visits?

13

4.5

0.7

  

0.725

 

 Did you find that the midwife was open to your questions?

14

4.6

0.7

  

0.843

 

 Did you find that the midwife cared about you?

15

4.5

0.8

  

0.846

 

 Did you have confidence in the midwife’s professional competence?

16

4.5

0.8

  

0.763

 

Ultrasound scan

 

78.3

20.8

4.2

0.828

 

0.716

 Did you receive sufficient information concerning the ultrasound scan?

35

4.1

0.8

  

0.709

 

 Were you happy with the midwife/doctor who performed the ultrasound scan?

36

4.2

0.9

  

0.709

 

Information during pregnancy care

 

66.6

21.1

3.5

0.872

 

0.814

 Did you receive sufficient information about the following?:

       

 Your physical health during the pregnancy

26

4.1

0.9

  

0.559

 

 Possible mood changes during the pregnancy

27

3.6

1.1

  

0.692

 

 How the baby was developing

28

4.0

0.9

  

0.638

 

 What you could expect regarding the birth

29

3.6

1.1

  

0.775

 

 Options for pain relief during the birth

30

3.5

1.2

  

0.725

 

 Post-natal period (e.g. breastfeeding, nutrition, care for the child)

31

3.1

1.3

  

0.679

 

Personal relationships in the delivery ward

 

81.0

18.7

10.3

0.906

 

0.778

 Were you treated politely and with respect by the health-care personnel at the delivery ward?

52

4.3

0.8

  

0.770

 

 Did you find that the health-care personnel were open to your questions?

54

4.2

0.8

  

0.839

 

 Did you find that the health-care personnel cared about you?

55

4.2

0.8

  

0.837

 

Attention to partner in the delivery ward

 

84.2

18.0

11.5

0.727

 

0.783

 Was your partner received well by the health-care personnel at the delivery ward?

65

4.3

0.8

  

0.573

 

 Were things arranged so that your partner could be present if you both so wished?

66

4.4

0.8

  

0.573

 

Resources and organization in the delivery ward

 

76.0

17.7

10.4

0.867

 

0.874

 Were you received well when you arrived at the delivery ward?

51

4.2

0.8

  

0.561

 

 Did the health-care personnel have time for you when you needed it?

53

4.1

0.9

  

0.715

 

 Did you have confidence in the health-care personnel’s competence?

56

4.3

0.8

  

0.706

 

 Did you receive sufficient information during your stay at the delivery ward?

57

3.9

0.9

  

0.715

 

 Did you find that the services you received during your stay at the delivery ward were well-organized?

59

3.9

0.9

  

0.734

 

 Did you find that the health-care personnel cooperated well during the birth?

60

4.2

0.9

  

0.704

 

 Did you receive information about who had the main responsibility for you?

61

3.6

1.3

  

0.485

 

Personal relationships during your postnatal stay

 

76.8

20.2

5.8

0.912

 

0.844

 Were you treated politely and with respect by the health-care personnel during your postnatal stay?

75

4.1

0.8

  

0.798

 

 Did you find that the health-care personnel were open to your questions?

77

4.0

0.9

  

0.842

 

 Did you find that the health-care personnel cared about you and your child?

78

4.1

0.9

  

0.836

 

Attention to partner during your postnatal stay

 

74.3

24.0

7.7

0.793

 

0.828

 Was your partner received well by the health-care personnel during your postnatal stay?

91

4.0

0.9

  

0.670

 

 Were things arranged so that your partner could be present if you both so wished?

92

3.9

1.2

  

0.670

 

Information about women’s health during your postnatal stay

 

58.3

26.2

6.6

0.825

 

0.663

 Did you receive sufficient information about the following?:

       

 Your physical health after giving birth

80

3.5

1.1

  

0.705

 

 Any possible mood changes after giving birth

81

3.2

1.2

  

0.705

 

Information and guidance about your child during your postnatal stay

 

67.2

24.1

7.7

0.901

 

0.826

 Did you receive sufficient information about the following?:

       

 Breastfeeding and other ways of feeding the child

82

3.8

1.0

  

0.755

 

 Child care

83

3.6

1.1

  

0.799

 

 Did you receive sufficient guidance on the following?:

       

 Breastfeeding and other ways of feeding the child

85

3.8

1.1

  

0.784

 

 Child care

86

3.6

1.1

  

0.782

 

Resources and organization during your postnatal stay

 

65.6

20.9

6.0

0.875

 

0.890

 Did the health-care personnel have time for you when you needed it?

76

3.9

1.0

  

0.748

 

 Did you have confidence in the health-care personnel’s professional competence?

79

4.1

0.9

  

0.679

 

 Did you find that the services you received during your postnatal stay were well organized?

87

3.7

1.0

7.6

 

0.802

 

 Did you find that the health-care personnel cooperated well during your postnatal stay?

88

3.7

1.0

  

0.817

 

 Did you receive information about who had the main responsibility for you?

89

2.7

1.3

  

0.536

 

 Were things arranged so that you could get enough peace and rest?

90

3.6

1.2

  

0.594

 

Personal relationships in the public health clinic

 

76.8

20.2

2.7

0.887

 

0.748

 Are you treated politely and with respect by the staff?

114

4.4

0.7

  

0.736

 

 Do you find that the staff are open to your questions?

116

4.4

0.7

  

0.798

 

 Do you find that the staff care about you and your child?

117

4.4

0.7

  

0.804

 

Information about women’s health in the public health clinic

 

56.7

25.9

3.5

0.828

 

0.697

 Did you receive sufficient information about the following?:

       

 Your physical health after giving birth

120

3.1

1.1

  

0.706

 

 Possible mood changes after giving birth

121

3.4

1.1

  

0.706

 

Information about your child in the public health clinic

 

75.3

17.9

2.8

0.831

 

0.748

 Did you receive sufficient information about the following?:

       

 The child’s development and health

122

4.2

0.7

  

0.706

 

 Vaccines for the child

123

4.3

0.7

  

0.631

 

 Breastfeeding and other ways of feeding the child

124

4.0

0.9

  

0.716

 

 Child care

125

3.6

1.1

  

0.648

 

Resources and organization in the public health clinic

 

79.9

16.3

2.6

0.768

 

0.807

 Do the staff spend enough time at the check-ups?

115

4.4

0.7

  

0.577

 

 Do you have confidence in the professional competence of the staff?

118

4.2

0.9

  

0.632

 

 Do you find that the care you receive at the health clinic is well organized?

127

4.1

0.8

  

0.607

 
  1. aHigh scores represent positive descriptions; range of 1–5 for individual items and 0–100 for scales
  2. ICC Intraclass correlation coefficient