Couple's attitudes toward husband's attendance in delivery room

One of the non-pharmacological ways to reduce labor pain is husband’s attendance during childbirth. So, the present study aimed to evaluate couple's attitudes toward husband’s attendance in delivery room.
Methods & Materials: This study was a descriptive-analytical survey conducted on 259 pregnant women and their spouses who referred to Alzahra hospital in Rasht, in 2014. Samples were selected by convenience method. A questionnaire was used to collect demographic data and assess attitudes of mothers and their husbands toward husband’s attendance in delivery room. Data were analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistics using SPSS software version 17.
The mean age for mothers was 26.42±5.59 years and for their husbands was 30.69±5.71 years. The mean score of mother's attitudes toward husband’s attendance in delivery room was 102.99±13.47 which 97.3 percent had positive attitude, 1.9 percent had neutral attitude and 0.8 percent had negative attitude. The mean score of husbands’ attitudes toward husband’s attendance in delivery room was 100.88±14.36 which 91.9 percent had positive attitude, 5.8 percent had neutral attitude and 2.3 percent had negative attitude. Also, linear regression determined that there was a significant relationship between mother's education level and attitude score, so that attitude score increased about 0.19 with increasing level of education.
Given the high prevalence of couples’ positive attitudes toward husband’s attendance during labor and delivery, it is suggested that these findings be taken into account when designing essential facilities and measures for the implementation of mother-friendly hospital program and the promotion of natural delivery.