NWT RESEARCH DATABASE

Regions: Inuvialuit Settlement Region, Gwich'in Settlement Area, Sahtu Settlement Area, Dehcho Region, North Slave Region, South Slave Region, Qikiqtaaluk Region

Tags: social sciences, health care, child care, maternity care, breast feeding, aboriginal women

Objective(s): To gather the firsthand experiences of policymakers, administrators, and health care providers on implementing and supporting access to maternal health services among Indigenous mothers; and, to apply and adapt the Interactive Theory of Breastfeeding to explore theoretical concepts influencing breastfeeding practices among Indigenous women in rural and urban health facilities within Canada and Australia.

Project Description: This licence has been issued for the scientific research application No.5373. The objectives of this research are to gather the firsthand experiences of policymakers, administrators, and health care providers on implementing and supporting access to maternal health services among Indigenous mothers; and to apply and adapt the Interactive Theory of Breastfeeding to explore theoretical concepts influencing breastfeeding practices among Indigenous women in rural and urban health facilities within Canada and Australia To examine the research questions and objectives being proposed, qualitative research methods will be utilized. Qualitative methods have been selected to gain a deeper understanding of a participant’s experience and explores research questions aimed to address research gaps in the literature and research using “how” and “why” questions. Moreover, the research being proposed aims to explore participant experiences and analyze inductive reasoning and evaluate interpretations. A case study research design will be utilized to explore the experiences of policymakers, health service providers, and advocates in implementing the Baby-friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) in maternal health facilities servicing Indigenous women. For this thesis proposal, a case study methodology has been selected for the research design as it aims to examine issues that occur within real-life settings. Case study research involves researchers exploring a chosen case, or multiple cases. The case studies are examined through detailed data collection which includes a variety of sources of information, including but not limited to observations, interviews, documents, and reports. Through examining case studies, the researchers can create a case description and case-based themes. Utilizing case studies on this topic will gain an understanding of the situation being examined and the associated behaviors, attitudes, practices, and provide context to understand relationships related to breastfeeding practice and health care provision across contexts and geographics. Overall, there are three different types of case study designs. The first type is an intrinsic case study, this type of case study is used when a researcher is aiming to explore a unique phenomenon. The second type is an instrumental case which is selected when a researcher uses a specific case to understand an issue on a broader scale. Lastly, a collective case study involves the study of multiple cases with the goal of gaining a broader understanding of a specific issue. The three types of case studies do not have to be used exclusively and can be altered and combined depending on the research design and objectives. Case study research is appropriate for a variety of research objectives, including description and explanation research. Description research objectives in case study research aim to explore questions that look at the “who”, “what”, “where”, “when”, and “how”. While explanation-based questions focus on analyzing questions that focus on examining “why”. The research that is being proposed involves examining the experiences, perspectives, and attitudes of stakeholders who were involved in the implementation of a Baby-Friendly Initiative. Moreover, the research being conducted will examine multiple case studies to explore how experiences, attitudes, perspectives, and beliefs may differ on a global scale. Case study methodologies have been used to explore research either on Indigenous topics, or with Indigenous participants. In most of the published literature, case study research is used for cross- community analysis, where the researchers are comparing the health status of Indigenous communities compared to non-Indigenous communities across different geographical locations. Case study analysis has also been used to explore research and its relationship with Indigenous cultures. A large part of this research involves knowledge sharing. Once results have been obtained and analyzed, the student researcher will write a report and infographic to be shared with stakeholders. In addition, the student researcher will apply to present their findings at conferences and academic sessions. Stakeholders can opt-in to receive notifications from the student research indicating when and where the research will be presented. Moreover, the student research would be open to creating additional knowledge documents and presentation to share findings with relevant groups. The fieldwork for this study will be conducted from October 31, 2022 to December 31, 2022.