Women’s experiences with postpartum urinary retention – a qualitative study

Abstract

Background: Postpartum urinary retention (PUR) affects between 0.18 and 14.6% of all postpartum women globally. To prevent sequelae to the bladder and urinary tract after childbirth, it is important to ensure effective bladder emptying. This is done by regularly emptying the bladder using a single-use catheter. The procedure is usually carried out by healthcare personnel in a hospital, after which the women are taught how to do it themselves. However, there was a lack of evidence-based knowledge on postpartum women’s experiences of being trained to use a catheter to empty their bladder and actually using the catheter.

Objective: To explore women’s experiences with PUR. We also wanted to examine the challenges they face with self-catheterisation whilst caring for their newborn child.

Method: The study has a qualitative exploratory design. We conducted semi-structured individual in-depth interviews with women who had experienced urinary retention for one to three weeks after childbirth. The data underwent a thematic analysis.

Results: The women were not prepared for the possibility of PUR. They experienced inconsistent and inadequate follow-up of their condition on the maternity ward. The training in self-catheterisation made the women feel that the care they received and the facilities at the maternity ward were inadequate. PUR also affected their lives after returning home. Returning home with PUR whilst having to care for their infant was challenging. However, the women were solution-oriented and coped well with daily life with PUR and their newborn child.

Conclusion: Experiencing PUR was contrary to the women’s expectations for the postpartum period. They found there to be a lack of information on PUR and wanted healthcare personnel to have a clearer and more consistent follow-up strategy for the condition. They also wanted more involvement in their care. The facilities associated with training at the hospital were not considered optimal. The condition and the practical challenges it entailed had implications for their daily life even after returning home, but they found effective ways to cope.