Parturient women's companions' knowledge of Law 11.108/2005 and their experience with the woman in the obstetric center

Abstract

This exploratory, descriptive, and qualitative study carried out in a public maternity in southern Brazil sought to know what information companions possess concerning Brazilian Law 11.108/2005 based on perspectives concerning their obstetrics center experiences and the support provided to delivering women. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews from November, 2010, to May, 2011, with 16 pregnant women's companions during every clinical period of their deliveries. Data analysis used the Collective Subject Discourse proposal and indicated little knowledge concerning the Law, that companions consider the experience as positive, evaluated the care given pregnant women as satisfactory, and developed actions for emotional and physical support. Even with the obstetrics center adversities and its inherently stressful delivery process, this study demonstrates that delivering women's companions can have positive experiences and act as support for women.