Researchers
- Dr Elizabeth Bailey
- Fiona Cowdell
- Lorna Hibberd
- Martha Burlingham
Research Background
Families with twins, triplets or more babies from the same pregnancy (multiple births) are often overlooked in research and policy at local and national levels, including within the period of the first 1,001 days that are recognised as crucial for lifelong wellbeing (Leadsom et al., 2013; Leach, 2017). The Department of Health and Social Care’s (2021) “The Best Start for Life” focuses on those 1,001 days (that encompass the years from conception to age 2) but does not explicitly consider multiple birth families. Public engagement work from the EBMBC uncovered a vital need for better care and greater understandings of family experiences with professionals and support across the first 1,001 days. Specifically, parents asked us to look for the ‘quick wins’, aiding parents to learn from each other, educate professionals, and outline the various sources of community level support.
This World Café project, funded by The Wellcome Trust through the British Academy/Leverhulme Small Research Grants Scheme, will bring together multiple birth families and health professionals involved in their care across the first 1,001 days to discuss their care experiences. By understanding and mapping the experiences of both the families and professionals, we can collectively generate the ‘quick win’ strategies for improving care. The short-term impact will include the production of a ‘good practice points’ document featuring parent stories to support professionals with additional insight to the care they provide. These will be used to support professionals with practice and education. Longer-term impacts will be in using the data gathered here to shape further research proposals to develop care interventions to meet the needs of multiple birth families.
Research Aims and Objectives
Aims:
Understand and map the experiences and reported needs of multiple birth families receiving care across the first 1,001 critical days and work with multiple birth parents and health professionals involved in their care to jointly generate ideas for simple service improvements.
Objectives:
- Host two World Cafés with multiple birth parents and health professionals to jointly generate ideas for service improvement across the first 1,001 critical days.
- Incorporate findings from the World Cafés, including images from the live capture illustration from the Birmingham World Café, into a good practice point document to be used in health professional education and practice.
Research Methods:
A World Café is a commonly used method that brings groups of people together in small groups at several tables, like in a café, to have conversations. There will be professionals and families sitting down together to talk about different topics at each table and people will be free to move around.
The topics;
- Pre-conception and early pregnancy
- Antenatal care, going for scans etc
- Preparing for birth and birth choices, experiences of birth
- First days with the babies in hospital (neonatal units or wards)
- First days and weeks at home (up to 3 months of age)
- Caring for your babies from 3 months to 2 years of age
Intended Outcomes
- Parents and professionals can explore the parenting journeys of multiple birth families from antenatal through to 2 years of age.
- Key learnings can inform education, future research ideas, and health and social care policy makers on how professionals can support multiple birth families.
- A ‘good practice points’ document with parent stories and a ‘quick wins’ guide where families can learn from the experiences of others.