A Quasi-Experimental Study to Compare the Effect of Respectful Maternity Care Using Intrapartum Birth Companion of Her Choice on Maternal and Newborn Outcome in Tertiary Care Centre

Abstract

Purpose of the StudyTraditionally during labour woman is supported by another woman. However, in hospitals, continuous support during labour has often become the exception rather than the routine. Worldwide, there is a growing concern about the disrespect and abuse of women seeking maternity care. This prompted us to decide to change the obstetric care practices by providing a birth companion of her choice to women during labour and compare their maternal and newborn outcomes with the data from the same institute before intervention. Methods This was a quasi-experimental study conducted in the Department of OBGY, GMCH, Aurangabad for 20 months and compared with the previous data from the same institute before implementation of the birth companion policy. The impact of this intervention was evaluated by caesarean section rate, episiotomy rates and admission to neonatal intensive care units, and data was analysed by an appropriate statistical test. ResultsThe rate of caesarean Section (20%) and episiotomy (8.57%) was significantly lower in the intervention group than in the control group. The rate of NICU admission and time required for initiation of breastfeeding was significantly lower in the intervention than in the control group. Around 86.6% of women from the intervention group were fully satisfied with the role of birth companion and 13.4% were partially satisfied. Conclusion Our study demonstrated that the use of an intrapartum birth companion of her choice helped us improve maternal and newborn outcomes without any harm. We recommend generalizing the policy of use of the trained birth companion of her choice in the private as well as the public sector.

Cultural adaptation and psychometric evaluation of Childbirth Experience Questionnaire 2 in Karnataka state, India

“…Women who had a birth companion with them for as long as they wished scored higher on “Own capacity” ( p value 0.004). It could be that the birth companion’s emotional support boosted the women’s confidence during birth, a phenomenon reported in some recent studies from India [ 33 , 34 ].…”

“…It could be that the birth companion's emotional support boosted the women's confidence during birth, a phenomenon reported in some recent studies from India [33,34].…”

Integrating support persons into maternity care and associations with quality of care: a postpartum survey of mothers and support persons in Kenya

“…These results also support literature suggesting that integrating support persons may lead to improved maternal and neonatal health outcomes [ 14 ]. The benefits of social support provided by doulas and support persons during labor and delivery are well-known (e.g., fewer cesarean deliveries, fewer neonatal intensive unit admissions) [ 6 , 29 ], but most literature has proposed underlying psychosocial mechanisms, positing that support persons’ presence reduces the adverse consequences of fear and distress when women labor alone [ 6 ]. Our study highlights improved quality care as an additional mechanism as support persons can influence providers’ care delivery.…”

“…Support persons can enhance communication between providers and women by expressing women’s concerns to providers and ensuring that providers’ directions are heard and understood. Furthermore, results suggest that support persons play an important role in newborn care [ 29 ] all women’s PC-ISP indicators were associated with increased newborn key practices. Support persons may aid families’ involvement in newborn care, allowing women to be aware of newborns’ well-being and care during their own postpartum care and recovery.…”

Promoting Respectful Maternity Care by Reducing Unnecessary Episiotomies: Experiences from Centers of Excellence for Breastfeeding in Vietnam

“…A recent systematic review found evidence (albeit at a low level of certainty) of an association between adoption of respectful maternity care policies in hospital environments and reduced episiotomy rates [ 20 ]. Ensuring that women have a companion of choice during birth has also been shown to reduce unnecessary caesarean sections and episiotomies [ 21 ].…”