take place during ANC visits, such as iron and folic acid supplementation and detection and investigation of hypertensive diseases of pregnancy [8, 11, 12]. During these visits, women are also encouraged to utilize other maternal services. This is particularly important given that women who attend ANC are more likely to use health facility delivery and postnatal (PNC) services [13–15]. The first 42 days are considered a critical period for the health of mothers and their infants. In this sense, PNC services have been shown to be effective in reducing infant mortality, as they enable healthcare workers to identify post-delivery complications and to provide timely treatment [16–18]. The primary components of maternal and child health services in Jordan include antenatal, delivery, and postnatal care, as well as vaccination coverage and treatment coverage of common childhood illnesses. During the antenatal period, women are recommended to receive two doses of the tetanus toxoid vaccine, as well as sufficient iron and folic acid supplements to prevent and/or treat anemia during pregnancy. Also, regular blood pressure checkups and tests to identify possible antenatal complications are considered a vital part of ANC services in Jordan. Pregnant women are also encouraged to carry out urine and blood tests on a regular basis in order to detect possible complications. They are also encouraged to attend antenatal visits on a monthly basis until the 28th gestational week, fortnightly until the 36th gestational week, and then weekly until the 40th week, resulting in an average of 12–13 visits during the course of pregnancy. With regards to intranatal care, the vast majority of pregnant women in Jordan give birth under the supervision of a trained health professional. Similarly, postnatal care includes postnatal checkups directly after delivery and before leaving the hospital, as well as a two-day postnatal checkup. However, the latter service is less accessed. As for child health services, a full program of vaccinations, recommended by the Jordanian Ministry of Health (MoH), [i.e. a vaccination against tuberculosisBacille Calmette Guerin (BCG)-, three doses each of the DPT (diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus) and polio vaccines, and measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) by the age of 12 months] is a requirement for the child immunization card that entitles children to enter school. When a child is registered at a Maternal and Child Health Center (MCHC), he/ she receives a health card that shows the height and weight and the vaccinations he/she has received since birth [19, 20]. Although ANC coverage in Jordan is relatively satisfactory, in that almost 79% of pregnant women have at least seven ANC visits [20], less information is available on PNC coverage. A national survey revealed that the rate of PNC utilization within 48 h of delivery among Jordanian women is 83.4% [20]. However, a high utilization rate of maternal and child healthcare services does not necessarily reflect a high quality of care. In Jordan, the maternal mortality rate is 19 per 100, 000 live births, the neonatal mortality rate is 15 per 1000 live births, and the mortality rate of babies born at or after 24 weeks of gestation is 10.6 per 1000 births [21– 23]. In a recent study, Khader et al. [21] reported that about 35% of stillbirths in Jordan are potentially preventable and that 30.3% can be avoided with optimal care. Antenatal and postnatal care services in Jordan are provided to women at different levels by obstetricians and midwives in both public and private healthcare settings. Available midwifery services include antenatal, postnatal, delivery, birth spacing, neonate and child health, breastfeeding, and immunization services in primary health centers and maternity hospitals in Jordan [24]. With regards to labor, health care policies promote hospital births and do not encourage home births. Despite the fact that 99.7% of Jordanian women undergo institutional delivery by skilled birth attendants [20], the majority of women (96%) prefer to receive ANC from a doctor, with only 3% of women seeking ANC from a midwife or a nurse [25]. There are several challenges related to nursing and midwifery practice in Jordan. These challenges include traditional nursing practice that does not reflect holistic care, lack of nursing practice quality, inadequate consideration given to primary health care services, high turnover rate of staff, and most importantly, severe shortage of midwives [24, 26]. Alyahya et al. BMC Health Services Research (2019) 19:425 Page 2 of 16 Although the current utilization rate of ANC is encouraging, detailed information about the quality of maternal-fetal and child healthcare services is limited. However, most of the available literature about evaluating the quality of maternal and newborn health care services in Jordan have either used a quantitative design [26] or focused on the views of healthcare professionals when collecting data. Qualitative data on this topic, especially data which reflects the perceptions and experiences of the women who receive such services, is limited. Qualitative data provides a deeper and richer insight into the social norms, behaviors, and challenges that might affect Jordanian women’s ability to take optimal advantage of the available maternal and newborn healthcare services. Understanding the quality of maternal healthcare services, including the barriers and obstacles to