A Weight Off My Mind: The Abandonment of Routine Antenatal Weighing a Change of Practice Research

Abstract

The 50 year old tradition of routinely weighing pregnant women, which has been identified as an obsolete practice, is still practiced by many. The antenatal clinic and community midwives, and medical staff from the Division of Obstetrics (Central Coast Area Health Service) as well as pregnant women attending the clinics have been surveyed to identify the impact on implementing evidence based practice (ceasing routine antenatal weighing). Using both quantitative and qualitative methods to provide a rich and detailed picture, the outcomes showed that the importance of weighing decreased for most of pregnant women. Midwives were surprised at the women's' acceptance to the change; and both health professional groups did not feel a loss of overall care. This research suggests that organised and planned change can achieve acceptance of evidence based practice.