Table 3.

Themes and sub-themes.

Categories	Themes	Sub-themes	Verbatims
3.2.1 Mothers' needs	3.2.1.1 Experiencing postpartum changes	Breastfeeding	“I was one of the first (needs), I think, it was really important to me. To be able to breastfeed. And I knew from what I read or heard from friends, that the beginnings are important.” (M6)
		Pain	“Well, I found it really hard to have to take care of this little being who depends on us in his physical state, and for me, that was the difficulty. I had just been through hell with the birth. And then I was, I was still in a lot of pain, I had difficulty moving and... having to look after the little one in that state was really super hard.” (M11)
		Sleep deprivation	“I was crying in the hallway with my baby in my arms I was at the end of my tether. I was exhausted. I hadn't slept for 48 h. And she (the baby) was crying because she was hungry. And I had to insist to make them take my child so I could sleep.” (M10)
		Postpartum state of mind	“Especially in the first few hours, I was still really stoned from the c-section and the epidural, so I was really high. [...] He was so calm that I was just like “oh yeah, I've got a baby. That's great.”” (M12)
	3.2.1.2 Emotions	To be reassured	“Maybe to have reassuring words such as “it's normal that she's crying, it's going to be ok.” It's always good to have reassuring words.” (M15)
		To be emotionally supported	“I also wanted to be mothered, in this context, yes to be mothered. That someone took care of me.” (M14)
	3.2.1.3 Creating a family unit	Partner's presence	“The presence of the father for me was crucial.” (M11)
		Need of intimacy	“For me, it is essential that we (mothers) should all have single rooms. This moment is so personal we should be alone.” (M12)
	3.2.1.4 Self-esteem	To do things by myself	“To be all the time with your baby it's helpful. The first night, I would have appreciated that they took the baby at the nursery, for my own comfort, to rest. But in the same time to be thrown in at the deep end, it's our new reality now. You have to go with it!” (M17)
		To share with peers	“It would be interesting to have a place where people can meet, like a kind of small sitting room. It could be an idea.” (M7)
	3.2.1.5 Difficulty in communicating their needs	Personality	“At the beginning I couldn't stop apologizing for disturbing them… They told me I do not need to apologize.” (M12)
		Expectations toward healthcare professionals	“I thought I should not need to ask but… maybe I should have asked.” (M1)
	3.2.1.6 Postpartum stay	Continuity of care	“But it's true that, depending on the person, it can also be quite destabilizing, in fact, to have different opinions, when in fact you don't know what to do. We don't know what is normal and what we want to do as well as possible [...] in fact I think what I want to say is that we would have liked to have had a midwife to follow us throughout.” (M7)
		Coherent information	“I had the impression of a lot of contradictory information […]. Somebody told me “the ombilical cord should be out of the diaper.” and then the next day another one told me: “No it should be in the diaper.” I felt lost.” (M3)
3.2.2 Fathers' needs	3.2.2.1 To be integrated during the postpartum stay	To be included in care procedures	“After the birth, it's true that it's very exhausting, you have a lot of emotions coming up, etc. And you don't necessarily think to ask. And we don't necessarily think to ask. I think it's something we should have asked for. […] We didn't think about it at the time, but it would have been nice to have at least a little something, not necessarily a real meal, but at least a little something to... To eat”. (F15)
		Sleep deprivation	”I think that a bed... would be more suitable. But at the same time, we're not going to die because we spend a week on an air mattress, eh?” (F13)
		Postpartum state of mind	“I was very emotional… which means that... (laughs) everything passes through the filters. We don't capture everything 100%.” (F5)
		To stay with their partner	“From the beginning, I try to be present and evidently for me it was important to have the possibility to be there for the first bath, diaper […] To be there, to listen and to be useful if I can.” (F17)
	3.2.2.2 To be reassured	Mother's and newborn's health	“I was able to join her with the little one, but I went just to see her for ten minutes basically, to see that everything was okay, that she was okay. Also to calm down because obviously I didn't know how things were going for her.”(F11)
	3.2.2.3 To be prepared for the postpartum stay	To picture themselves in the future	“My main concern was to know how the postpartum stay will unfold.” (F10)
		To have point of reference	“Do they do the first change or is it us? Will they help us or not? For the bath: will they do it? Is it mandatory?” (F1)
	3.2.2.4 To consider their needs as non-priority	To consider themselves as non-priority	“Well I don't know how to put it, it' I have the impression that I didn't show myself, um... the need for someone to come and support me emotionally, […]my most important emotional need, I think, was to feel that my partner was supported at times when I wasn't there.” (F6)
		To be their partner's support	“The main element of the play is the mother who gives birth, to support her, so I consider myself as a supporting element too.” (F2)
		Expectation regarding the hospital	“It's reassuring. I find that this is what most parents are looking for, [...] to have people available in case of a problem, and to be quickly on the spot. knowing that at the (hospital), well we know that.... That at the level of the birth itself, we know that if there is the slightest problem, well that we, at least in (hospital), are dealing with specialists.” (F14)
		Personality	“I... didn't want to disturb them either. I thought that when I rang the bell, they might be busy […] I also tend to... try to wait as long as possible when I really need something.” (F1)
3.2.3 Shared parental needs	3.2.3.1 To care for their newborn	To be supported to learn to care for a newborn	“The needs we had… it was related to… having help and support and advices because it was our first child. We discovered everything.” (F15)
		Newborn complications	“It (tremors)gives you stress because you don't know what you have to look for. What is normal or not. In the first days I had stress to observe it, not knowing if it was normal.” (M7)
		To be acknowledged in their parenting role	“To feel supported. I think to feel supported is the most important. That we are valued.” (F14)
	3.2.3.2 Returning home	Preparation of discharge	“It's exactly that (discussing about how i twill ne at home), it's missing. We talk right here, right now but not about after discharge.” (M14)