Application of Professional labor Support in University Hospitals of Tehran City and Related Affecting Factors

Professional labor support is a continuous support to obviate emotional, physical and informational needs of women during labor appropriately which is an essential aspect of reproductive health. The aim of this study is to determine the application and importance of professional labor support and some factors affecting it by midwives and midwifery students. This is a cross sectional study, and 81 midwifery students and midwives of hospitals related to Tehran University of Medical Sciences were investigated in 2010. The standard Labor Support Questionnaire (LSQ) was used to determine the amount, importance and some barriers regarding support with the score range of 0-135, and it was classified into three levels: Poor, average and good. The average LSQ application score was 85.56±21.7 (moderate level); 82.44±22.46 (moderate) for students and 94.52±16.98 (good) for midwives. Also, the application of physical, emotional and advocacy support was at a moderate level and in terms of informational supports was at a good level. Midwives and students perceived all aspects of support as important. No significant correlation was observed between the importance of support and individual characteristics of students and midwives (p>0/05). From the midwives’ point of view, poor paperwork and no valuable support by the mothers, and from students’ viewpoint, lack of skill and experience were the most important barriers in the application of supportive behaviors. Considering the barriers in application of labor supports, there is a need to eliminate these barriers and to valorize the given support.