EN
Introduction: Changes to perinatal care should pertain to respecting the psychological and social value of birth, the promotion of privacy and individuality, increased respect for a woman’s and her husband’s rights to information, and their conscious and active participation during labour and birth, as well as to the promotion of a holistic model of family care during the period of procreation. Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate perinatal care offered at Bialystok hospitals, based on the opinions of postpartum women hospitalized in obstetric wards. Materials and methods: The survey was conducted in the obstetric wards of two Bialystok hospitals, using a questionnaire developed solely for the purpose of this study in combination with the questionnaire developed by the Childbirth with Dignity Foundation. Results: This study revealed that, in the opinions of parturient women, the level of the quality of perinatal care is significantly modulated by compliance with the patient’s rights during hospitalization, knowledge about the Patient’s Bill of Rights, the friendliness of medical personnel, the creation of an atmosphere of privacy during hospitalization, the feeling of safety during hospitalization, individuals’ attitudes towards the patient, the implementation of routine procedures, compliance with novel standards of perinatal care and the implementation of these standards in obstetric wards, and the quality of neonatal care. Conclusions: Patient satisfaction is frequently used to evaluate the quality of medical care and to guide the development of health care services. The findings of this study underline the need to further discuss and specify the aims of quality perinatal care. The authors estimate that there are deficiencies in the different services that could be addressed by conducting a multi-professional and interdisciplinary research study.