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Personal control in pain relief during labour.
M E Wright1, H McCrea, M Stringer
1School of Health Sciences - Nursing, University of Ulster, Coleraine, Co. Londonderry, Northern Ireland. me.wright@ulst.ac.uk
Journal of Advanced Nursing
|December 15, 2000
Summary
Women largely maintained their desired control over pain relief during childbirth. Midwives showed surprising agreement with women's rules, and women's preferences shifted slightly towards midwives' views post-birth.
Area of Science:
- Reproductive Health
- Midwifery Studies
- Sociology of Health
Background:
- Personal control is crucial for women's childbirth experiences.
- Tacit rules guide interactions between women and healthcare professionals during labor.
- Understanding control in pain relief is key to improving maternity care.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess women's control over pain relief during labor.
- To compare women's perceived rules before and after childbirth.
- To compare women's rules with those held by midwives.
Main Methods:
- Quantitative study employing a repeated measures design.
- Questionnaire administered to 100 women (pre- and post-delivery) and 35 midwives.
- Analysis focused on consistency and shifts in rules regarding pain relief control.
Main Results:
- Women's adherence to their pre-childbirth rules for pain relief control was largely consistent post-delivery.
- Midwives demonstrated significant agreement with some of the women's rules.
- A trend emerged where women's rules shifted post-birth, aligning more closely with midwives' perspectives.
Conclusions:
- Women generally maintained a sense of personal control over pain relief during childbirth.
- The alignment between women's and midwives' rules suggests potential for collaborative care.
- Further research is needed to explore the influence of childbirth experience versus midwife influence on women's rule adherence.