the effect of supportive companionship on length of labor and desire to breastfeed in primiparous women

the effect of supportive companionship on length of labor and desire to breastfeed in primiparous women    samieizadeh toosi t [1] *, sereshti m [2] , dashipur ar [3] , mohammadinia n [4] , arzani a [5]    received : 14 april , 2011 accepted: 10 june , 2011    abstract  background & aims: child birth is the most significant life change experience for primiparous women with lifelong effects on their health. being alone in labor in an unfamiliar environment such as a hospital can be a frightening experience for a vulnerable mother-to-be. this study was aimed to evaluate the effects of psychosocial support during labor, delivery and the immediate postpartum period provided by a female companion of her choice during labor, breastfeeding desire and mother-infant interaction .   materials & methods : this study was conducted on 210 primiparous mothers at the age range of 18-35 years old who were at 37 weeks of gestational age or grater at onset of labor. the study population was randomly divided into cases and controls. the case group had a female companion experienced at birth to provide continuous physical and emotional support. the second group women were alone in labor. we compared the duration of labor, time of delivery, apgar scores, breastfeeding intent and early breastfeeding initiation one hour after birth and demographic factors of mothers. the data were analyzed by spss software.  result: there were no significant difference between groups in demographic factors, age, gestational age fetal weight, and state of anxiety score at admission time. the time of initiation of breastfeeding one hour after birth was significantly lower in the intervention group, and the length of labor was significantly shorter in the case group compared to the control group. newborn apgar score was higher in the control group.  conclusion: psychosocial support by a female companion of patient's choice has a positive effect on breastfeeding and length of labor. psychosocial support is an important factor for breastfeeding start .  keywords: labor , breastfeeding, companionship    address: department of midwifery, zahedan university of medical sciences, iranshahr nursing and mdwifery school, iran  tel : (+98)9125228489   email : [email protected]   [1] instructor, midwifery faculty, zahedan university of medical sciences, zahedan , iran( corresponding author )  [2] instructor, midwifery faculty, shahrkord university of medical sciences, shahrkord, iran  [3] instructor, nutrition faculty, zahedan university of medical sciences, zahedan, iran  [4] master in community health, zahedan university of medical sciences, zahedan, iran  [5] bsc in midwifery, iran hospital, iranshahr, iran