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Building research capacity in the Maternal health and Maternal Morbidity in Ireland study: Second baby follow-up, intervention development and testing, and measurement of costs (MAMMI-SIM)

As maternal mortality decreases, morbidity becomes even more important as an indicator of quality care. Reported postnatal morbidities include backache, tiredness, urinary (UI) and faecal incontinence, dyspareunia, depression and wound infection following caesarean section. The MAMMI study (Maternal health And Maternal Morbidity in Ireland), Phase 1, has recruited 2,800 primiparous women from three maternity hospitals. Participants complete questionnaires about their health before and during pregnancy, and at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months afterwards. The extension into Phase 2, MAMMI-SIM (the present proposal), involves:
-Second baby survey
-Intervention for women with urinary incontinence
-Measuring costs of morbidity to women and services.
Aim
To build and attract capacity into the area of maternal health and health-services research at postdoctoral level in Ireland.
This will be achieved by:
-developing a partnership between six experienced principal research investigators in differing fields, and clinicians, consumers and decision-makers in the field of maternity care.
-forming a strong, interdisciplinary maternal health research team that will guide, teach and support 3 post-doctoral researchers (biostatistics, midwifery, health economics) to develop skills and competencies required for successful interdisciplinary and trans-sectoral health-services research.
-following-up the MAMMI cohort to ascertain levels of morbidity following second birth (n=1600) (IF-1, biostatistics).
-developing, and testing for feasibility/acceptability, an intervention for women experiencing UI, and preparing a funding proposal for a trial to test the intervention (IF-2, midwifery).
-assessing costs of postnatal morbidity to the health-service and women (IF-3, health economics)
-disseminating findings effectively, to influence policy and practice in Ireland, and submitting interdisciplinary funding proposals in maternal health area.
Results of MAMMI-SIM will ascertain which women in future might need different care, or more support, intervention or treatment following birth, and costs of such care, from which improvements in maternity services can be implemented.