The Pregnancy Project – The Netherlands (IFMSA NL)

Name of the activity: The Pregnancy Project

Country/NMO: The Netherlands (IFMSA NL)

Program: Maternal Health & Access to Safe Abortion

Contact information: [email protected]

Type of the activity: Education

General description:

By participating in this project, the pregnant woman and the student will contribute to the improvement of (maternal) healthcare. The students will learn more about the experience of being pregnant and can use this knowledge in the execution of their future medical profession. The healthcare employees can use the feedback to improve their work. During the evaluation, the organization of the project and the experiences of the students will be discussed. The pregnant women that participate in this project have mentioned their appreciation for the familiar face of the student during each appointment in the hospital.

Focus area:

Maternal Healthcare Services (antenatal, antepartum and postpartum care)

Problem statement:

There is a high demand to learn more about the doctor-patient interaction in the clinic. However, the current bachelor phase of the medical curriculum in the Netherlands does not satisfy in this demand since medical students mainly learn from the doctor’s point of view. During “The Pregnancy Project”, we aim to give future doctors more insight into the situation of pregnant women.

Target groups and beneficiaries:

Firstly, by participating in this project the student will contribute to improving the healthcare.
Secondly, future doctors will learn more about the experience of being pregnant. We hope this will make them better and more understanding doctors in the future.
The pregnant women that have participated in this project mentioned that they had really appreciated the familiar face of the student at every appointment in the hospital.

Objectives and indicators of success:

Objectives:
• medical students a better understanding of maternal health during pregnancies and pregnancy from the patient’s point of view
• medical students practice in doctor-patient communication skills
• medical students a better understanding of the psychosocial aspects of a pregnancy

Indicators:
• the number of participants;
• the appraisal of the project by students, pregnant women and healthcare employees;
• the number of participating healthcare centers.

Methodology:

“The Pregnancy Project”starts with the application of a medical student and a pregnant woman. The organizing committee will link a student to a pregnant woman and will facilitate the first contact between both parties. The student and the pregnant woman are free to personalize their contact. The student will attend all appointments at the hospital (including labor) unless the pregnant woman makes an objection against the presence of the student. The student will write an evaluation of the appointment and will send this to the organizing committee. The organizing committee will also evaluate the appraisal of the pregnant woman about her contact with the student and the project in general. At least once a year the organizing committee will facilitate an evaluation with the department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of the local hospital and the students who have participated in “The Pregnancy Project”.

Plans for evaluation:

After every appointment, the student will sent a short summary of the appointment with their learning objectives and experiences to the organizing committee. These experiences will be discussed during the evaluation with the department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of the local hospital. There will at least be one evaluation each year at the end of the academic year. If possible, multiple evaluations will be held throughout the year.