title: A case study of volunteers providing labour and childbirth support in hospitals in Canada.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  to document the process and outcome of an attempt to combine and institutionalise two grassroots health programmes that provided trained volunteers to support women through labour and childbirth in hospital.
  
  
  METHODS
  a qualitative, descriptive, comparative case study of programmes, with data collected through in-depth individual interviews with key informants and document review.
  
  
  METHODS
  a Regional Health Authority in Canada.
  
  
  METHODS
  16 women, from various stakeholder groups, with knowledge about the programmes.
  
  
  RESULTS
  despite considerable effort expended, the unified regional programme was not realised. This research highlights contextual factors that were salient for the programme's implementation.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  complex individual, interpersonal and institutional factors needed to be acknowledged but were not addressed in programme planning. This research may be relevant to policy and decision makers considering expansion of grassroots or community programmes to regional levels of service.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Health Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
authors.forename: Laura E
authors.initials: LE
authors.lastname: Lagendyk
authors.forename: Wilfreda E
authors.initials: WE
authors.lastname: Thurston
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000416:Alberta; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007743:Labor, Obstetric; D008880:Midwifery / Q000592:standards*; D033262:Narration; D020380:Needs Assessment / Q000592:standards*; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D019982:Organizational Case Studies; D010043:Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care; D011247:Pregnancy; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care; D012944:Social Support; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014838:Volunteers / Q000458:organization & administration*