Decreasing Patient Dissatisfaction With Unplanned Cesarean Sections

Decreasing Patient Dissatisfaction With Unplanned Cesarean Sections: A Prospective Trial

Patient satisfaction after an unplanned cesarean section was studied and in the previous study it was noted that there were common themes that lead to patient dissatisfaction. The four common themes were: lack of trust regarding the indications for surgery, communication issues, loss of control, and fear during the situation. The purpose of this second phase of this study is to try and improve patient dissatisfaction by offering additional emotional support prior to the c/s with the hope of decreasing the trust issues toward physicians, decreasing the communication barriers, and decreasing the fear and loss of control. The additional emotional support that will be received prior to the cesarean section will be scripted based upon the findings of the investigators' prior study - the patient will be asked four questions and each question addresses the four themes that were noted in the previous study.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Cesarean Section; Patient Satisfaction
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Pre-operative support

Detailed Description

All patients admitted to the Labor and Delivery unit at Albany Medical College who are in labor or being evaluated for possible indicated delivery will receive information regarding the study. Those who consent to participation, if they are then determined to need a cesarean birth will be randomized into two groups. The first group will receive pre-operative counseling by the obstetrics resident who will be performing the cesarean, the second group will receive usual care. The counseling sheet was determined based upon the findings of a previous study done at this institution, and addresses four themes that were recurrent aspects of patient dissatisfaction after cesarean birth: poor communication, trust of physicians, loss of control, and fear of surgery.

Two weeks after the cesarean section, patients participating in the study are called on the phone by one of the investigators. A patient satisfaction survey, using a Likert scale is administered. This investigator is blinded as to whether the patient has received the additional counseling or not. Comparison of these scores will be used to determine whether pre-operative counseling can reduce dissatisfaction in patients undergoing unplanned cesarean sections.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 208
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • New York
    • Albany, New York, United States, 12208
      • Albany Medical College

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Child; Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: Female

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• pregnant patient admitted at Albany Medical Center
• Faculty group patient

Exclusion Criteria:

--Patients who have scheduled cesarean sections

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
No Intervention: Typical Care; These patients will receive normal peripartum care and support.
Experimental: Pre-operative support; These patients will receive additional emotional support prior to undergoing an unplanned cesarean section during labor.	Behavioral: Pre-operative support

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Patient satisfaction	Two weeks postpartum study subjects will participate in a patient satisfaction survey, using a phone interview, and a quantitative Likert scale to determine whether pre-operative counseling improves patient satisfaction scores.	2 weeks postpartum

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Albany Medical College

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: June 1, 2015
• Primary Completion (Actual): May 1, 2017
• Study Completion (Actual): May 1, 2017

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: June 3, 2015
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 11, 2015
• First Posted (Estimate): June 15, 2015

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): January 12, 2018
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: January 10, 2018
• Last Verified: January 1, 2018

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Other Study ID Numbers: AlbanyMC