The Institut national de santé publique du Québec (INSPQ) [Québec’s public health institute] was mandated by Québec’s Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux (MSSS) [ministry of health and social services] to produce a report on the effects of group prenatal classes. In Québec, prenatal classes are meant to provide pregnant women and their partners with information and to prepare them for childbirth and their new role as parents.
The purpose of this report is to identify the effects of group prenatal classes based on the recent scientific literature in order to better position their contribution to the service offering in Québec.
Methodology
Bibliographic research was conducted with a focus on publications dated between 2004 and 2015 in the Ovid SP, Medline and EBSCOhost databases using keywords related to health promotion, obstetrical procedures, pregnancy outcomes, breastfeeding, health and adaptation. The model of health status and i…