The six week postnatal check: women's choice of service provider.

This study describes mothers' choice between General Practitioner (GP) and hospital clinics for the six week postnatal check and elucidates influencing factors for their choice, using structured interviews with mothers within one week of discharge from hospital. Intended uptake of the six week check was high overall. For mother's own check, 203 (45%) planned to attend hospital clinics and 116 (26%) planned to attend the GP, while for the baby's check 115 (26%) planned to attend hospital clinics and 245 (55%) planned to attend the GP. The remainder planned to attend a consultant privately or had been referred to the specialised gynaecological/paediatric clinic. Factors influential for those choosing GPs were: convenience, familiarity and opportunity for discussion. Hospital instructions and the expected quality of examination were important for those choosing the hospital. Some possible misconceptions regarding provision of aspects of postnatal care were uncovered. This study highlights underuse of the GP service for the routine six week check and makes recommendations in relation to this.