Experience of pregnancy among Hispanic women

The purpose of this research was to explore the Hispanic women's first experience of pregnancy. The investigation was a descriptive study of 10 nulliparous women who considered themselves Hispanic. Each informant was interviewed twice during the last month of pregnancy. An open ended interview schedule was designed to answer the research questions. Utilizing the grounded theory approach addition topic areas emerged as being important to the sample and was explored in subsequent interviews. The findings indicate that becoming a mother us an important step in the lives of Hispanic women. The women interviews described the pregnancy as a time for growth in which they often turned to their mothers for support and advice. The majority of the women had heard of the traditional childbirth practices and expressed a tendency to adhere to these practices. Knowledge of these traditional practices will enable nurse to provide culturally sensitive care