The Effect of Prenatal Group Education on Knowledge, Attitude and Selection of Delivery Type in Primiparous Women

Introduction: Lack of knowledge about choosing delivery type in mothers, is one of the reasons for the increase in the number of cesarean section. Therefore, this study was performed to determine the effect of prenatal group education on knowledge, attitude and delivery type selection in primiparous women who referred to Qaemshahr Health Care Center. Methods: In this quasi-experimental study, 170 primiparous women who had no limitation for having normal delivery were selected. The sampling was multistage and purposeful. Data gathering tool was a questionnaire. Education was started at the 27th week of gestational age and continued to the end of pregnancy in regular intervals. The questionnaires were filled by study samples before and after education as pre-test and post-test). Data was analyzed by SPSS software using descriptive statistics, t-test, Vilcoxon, and Z tests. Results: A significant difference was observed in women's knowledge and attitude, before and after education. Normal delivery was women's preferable choice before and after education, but, following up their performance, showed that only 57.6% chose normal delivery in practice. In fact, 61.8% of women before and 80.6% of them after education, chose normal delivery. Conclusion: Prenatal education is effective in reducing the rate of caesarean section. It is recommended to provide more facilities regarding different methods of low-pain deliveries and also educate labor room staffs for normal delivery.