A psychometric evaluation of an instrument for measuring resident's attitude towards caesarean vs. natural vaginal delivery

In recent years, there has been a significant increase in the rate of cesarean section in Iran. Physicians can have an active role in controlling this rate as they are truthfully consulted and followed by the general public. The Iranian Ministry of Health and Medical Education has also adopted new policies to control the national cesarean rate. The present study aims to determine the knowledge and attitude of medical residents towards elective cesarean section versus normal vaginal delivery (NVD) in 2015.In this cross-sectional study, residents of four major fields of specialty (obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, general surgery and internal medicine) were interviewed using a researcher-made questionnaire. The face and content validity and reliability of the instrument were determined, and data analysis was performed using SPSS version 21.The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was 0.77. A total of 108 residents with the mean age of 32.89 participated in the study. Of this number, 53 reported at least one personal experience of childbirth (their own or that of their wives) with a satisfaction rate of 9.5 and 6.3 out of 10 for NVD and cesarean respectively. The mean score of the domains of "knowledge", "attitude" and "function" were 3.5, 3.6 and 3.3 (out of 5) respectively. There was a meaningful correlation between the variable of "sex" and the domain of "knowledge", "specialty" and all three domains, and "methods of delivery" and the two domains of "attitude" and "function". 34.3% of the residents chose "mandatory public education of pregnant women" as the first step to decrease the cesarean rate.It can be concluded that educating pregnant women should be the main strategy for decreasing the cesarean rate in Iran. Considering the significance of medical specialists’ "knowledge", "attitude" and "function” with regard to the method of delivery chosen by pregnant women, it is recommended to develop specialty educational programs in line with the policies of the Iranian Ministry of Health to decrease the cesarean rate.