Effective education to decrease elective caesarean section

Objective: To examine the effect of education on deciding about natural delivery in women opting for elective caesarean section.Methods: The quasi-experimental study was carried out between January and March 2012 and comprised a sample of 200 women in their third trimester of pregnancy attending women s clinics of Imam Ali Hospital, Zahedan, Iran, with the intention of having elective caesarean section. The subjects were voluntarily classified into three groups: one group received an educational package; the other had educational package along with group discussion, and the last one without any intervention was considered the control group. Post-test was conducted a month after intervention. Data were analysed using Kruskal Wallis, and logistic regression tests.Results: Group A represented the controls and had 100 (50%) women; Group B with the educational package had 40 (20%), while there were 60 (30%) women in Group C who had exposure to the educational package as well as group discussion. There were significant changes in behaviour in Group B and C (p 0.01) but no change among the controls in Group A. In Group C, 25 (42%) women decided to go for natural delivery, while 1 (2.5%) woman had a change of opinion in Group B. Four (4%) women in the control Group A had ultimately natural delivery, but they were all emergency cases.Conclusion: The two educational methods increased model construct scores, including awareness, attitude, perceived behaviour control, subjective norms and behavioural intention. Nevertheless, educational package in conjunction with group discussion was more effective in influencing the choice towards natural delivery.