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. 2024 Oct 24;12(21):2125.
doi: 10.3390/healthcare12212125.

Experience of Labour and Childbirth in a Sample of Portuguese Women: A Cross-Sectional Study

Márcio Tavares  1 , Pedro Alexandre-Sousa  2 , Andrea Victória  1 , Susana Loureiro  3 , Ana Paula Santos  1 , José Mendes  4
Affiliations

Experience of Labour and Childbirth in a Sample of Portuguese Women: A Cross-Sectional Study

Márcio Tavares et al. Healthcare (Basel). .

Abstract

Background/objectives: Childbirth is a profoundly personal experience that often does not align with expectations. The World Health Organization has established guidelines for best practises; in this sense, it is crucial to understand the childbirth experiences of Portuguese women in comparison with these guidelines.

Methods: A quantitative, descriptive, correlational, and cross-sectional study was conducted to achieve this. In total, 615 women completed a sociodemographic questionnaire and the Labour and Childbirth Experience questionnaire, which comprised 39 statements based on the WHO's recommendations. Additionally, the study utilized the Life Satisfaction Scale and gathered insights into participants' overall perception of care during this phase.

Results: The results were categorized as follows: (1) practises influencing the labour experience; (2) practises influencing the experience of vaginal birth; (3) practises affecting the experience of caesarean birth; and (4) emotional experience during labour and birth.

Conclusions: Notably, the study found that practises discouraged by the WHO are still prevalent, potentially enabling obstetric violence. However, a robust and statistically significant correlation was observed between the childbirth experience and the overall perception of care.

Keywords: labour; life experience; obstetric; parturition; pregnant woman.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Results of Labour and Childbirth Experience Questionnaire (LCEQ).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Practises that influence the experience of labour.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Practises that influence the experience of vaginal birth.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Practises that influence the experience of caesarean section.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Emotional experience during labour and birth.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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