Influence of the partner’s participation in the prenatal care: Satisfaction of primiparous women regarding the support in labor

Abstract

Objective: to correlate the satisfaction of primiparous women regarding the support and usefulness of the partner during the delivery process with their presence and qualification in the prenatal care. Methods: a correlational study carried out with 155 primiparous women in the joint accommodation of a tertiary maternity hospital. The subscale 6, on the support of the partner, from the Questionnaire of Experience and Satisfaction Regarding the Childbirth was used. In order to test the association between the variables, the chi-square test was used, considering the level of significance of 5%. Results: the variable presence of the partner during the prenatal period was statistically associated to the satisfaction of the puerperium with the support (p=0.0004)and usefulness of the support (p=0.007) during labor, while the variable qualification of the companion in the prenatal period was statistically associated to the satisfaction with the support (p=>0.00001) and to the usefulness of the support (p=<0.001; p=<0.00001 e p=0.006) provided by the partner during all the phases assessed (labor, delivery and immediate postpartum). Conclusion: the significant associations found demonstrate the importance of encouraging the participation of the partner in the parturition process and their qualification.