Prenatal education for mothers with disabilities

Prenatal nurse educators are well prepared to meet the learning needs of ma ny expectant mothers. But how prepared are they to meet the learning needs of mothers with disabilities? To answer this question, eight mothers with v arious chronic illnesses located in north-eastern Ontario, Canada were aske d to describe their maternity experiences. Given the small convenience samp le and exploratory nature of the study, a qualitative content analysis was done. The mothers' reports described interaction with a variety of health p rofessionals. This analysis focuses on findings specific to nurses who prov ide prenatal education. In general, mothers reported they had received insu fficient, inappropriate information, especially about their pregnancy and c hronic illnesses. The mothers thought that nurses doubted the ability of wo men with disabilities to be decision-makers or responsible and 'proper' mot hers. Suggestions by disabled mothers for quality care in prenatal educatio n are described. A more emancipatory approach to preparing nurses for pract ice as prenatal educators is recommended. Such an approach can reduce the b arriers associated with power differences between women with disabilities a s 'learners' and their nurse 'teachers'.