Understanding the Meaning of Lived Experience "Maternal Near Miss": A Qualitative Study Protocol

Introduction:Maternal near-miss (MNM) is defined as “a woman who almost died but survived
a serious maternal complication during pregnancy, childbirth, or within 42 days of completion
of pregnancy”. Despite the long-term physical and psychological burden of this event on the
mother’s life, the meaning of MNM is not clear. In addition, the mother’s role complicates the
understanding of this phenomenon. Therefore, this study aimed to understand lived experience
of Iranian “near-miss” mothers in the postpartum period.
Methods:In this Heideggerian phenomenological study, we used Souza and colleagues’
theoretical framework to understand the meaning of the lived experience of near-miss mothers
in-depth. The participants had experienced MNM at least one year ago by World Health
Organization (WHO)approach in multicenter, academic, tertiary care hospitals in Mashhad,
Iran. Taking into account reflexivity and after obtaining ethical approval, participants were
purposively sampled using semi-structured interviews, and data analysis was conducted by
Diekelmann and colleagues up to data saturation. Data collection and analysis has been argued
by Lincoln and Guba.
Discussion:Our findings resulted in updating the existing knowledge about the meaning of
MNM and its implication. Given the different needs and challenges of near-miss mothers, it is
necessary to design a supportive program of primary care for them. Policymakers and managers
should consider the lived experience of these mothers when planning and taking decisions.