The experience of young women with gestational syphilis from the conceptual perspective of hope.
Monika Wernet, Zaida Charepe, Constança Festas and 2 others
PMID 42506970WHAT IT FOUND
16 young women with gestational syphilis said prenatal care felt judgmental, making them avoid questions and hide their diagnosis.
Protecting their unborn child and following treatment kept hope alive.
Key findings
01Interactions with prenatal-care professionals were experienced as judgmental and stigmatizing, causing discomfort and avoidance of questions.
02Hope was sustained by protecting the unborn child, adhering to treatment and tests, and belief in divine protection.
03Limited informational and social support led women to keep the diagnosis secret and rely on the internet.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Only 16 women were interviewed, and they came from a Brazilian maternity hospital, so the themes may not apply to other settings or groups. The study was a secondary analysis of interviews originally focused on perceptions of healthcare, not on hope as a primary target. Three invited women declined because discussing the situation caused discomfort, and four dropouts may have selected participants who were more willing to speak about stigma. All participants self-identified as black or mixed-race, and the authors state that age, race, and other characteristics did not provide enough data for intersectional analyses. The paper reports experiences and themes, not measured outcomes or tested effects of any communication intervention.
Declared interests
Financial support: Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CAPES) - Brasil, process 306133/2022-9.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the suggested hope-focused prenatal communication as proven to improve syphilis outcomes. This was a qualitative study of 16 women's experiences, not a test of an intervention.