SOCIAL SUPPORT IN LABOR - A SELECTIVE REVIEW

Support during labor has been offered by a variety of different people , including fathers, professional medical staff, trained labor coaches and monitrices, untrained lay supporters and family and friends. A co mparison of the various findings shows that support given by trained o r lay untrained female supporters, who are not necessarily known to th e laboring woman, yields the most extensive, methodologically sound, a nd consistently positive effects on obstetric and psychosocial outcome s. Although trained labor coaches have been shown to exert a positive effect on outcome, the results of doula support are the most impressiv e when both methodology and outcome effects are considered. Studies of father support have yielded contradictory findings, although women do appear to value their presence in most studies. Family and friends ha ve not been shown to influence outcomes. Support from professional med ical staff is rare, but when given, has, in some cases, had a positive effect. These findings are important for the field, since the use of lay supporters constitutes a low-cost preventive intervention. The inc lusion of lay supportive women is also consistent with traditional pra ctices in most countries in the world.