Table 2 Synthesis of data: coding and categories

Sub-categories

Knowledge

Practice

Awareness and confidence

Social power

Cultural belief and practices

Working load and capacity of midwives

Perceived low quality of postnatal care

Suboptimal patient-centered care

Codes

Knowledge on postnatal period;

Knowledge of danger signs;

Lack of knowledge on safe self-treatment.

Lack of hygiene;

Delay to conduct postnatal care visit;

Lack skills to do wound-care.

Lack of confidence to do self-wound care;

Attitude to food taboo;

Submissive to the midwife’s advice.

Information from family;

Information from neighbors;

Information from parents;

Submissive to what parents said;

Feeling afraid of parents/ grandmothers;

Feeling afraid to disobey parents/grandmothers’ advice;

Living with parents.

Traditional rules;

Intergeneration practice;

Cultural self-treatment practice;

Practices from grandmothers;

Food taboo;

Herbal potion;

Breastfeeding booster potion;

Unseen hazards.

Working load;

Collaboration between village midwives and health cadres;

Knowledge of midwives;

Education on food taboo.

Timely service;

Availability of midwives;

Insuficient time to educate patients;

Lack of education on breastfeeding;

No information for next visit;

No education to family;

Perceived quality of service;

Inconsistent home-visit;

Selective care;

Inadequate education for wound care;

Indirect communication between midwives and mothers.

Lack of interactive communication;

Lack of frank communication;

Language barrier;

Inconvenient treatment.