Abstract:
The present study was randomized control trial research which aimed at investigating the effects of a nursing partnership program on preterm birth in pregnant women at risk for preterm birth. The study sample consisted of 112 pregnant women at risk of preterm birth who sought prenatal care at Kampangsean Hospital Nakhon Pathom Province, Thailand. The subjects were randomly divided into two groups. The experimental subjects received the nursing partnership program with an emphasis on raising awareness of their risk of preterm birth, collaborating to solve problems and reduce the risk of preterm birth, teaching observation of signs and symptoms of preterm labor when having those symptoms, and conducting one visit with study subjects at the prenatal clinic and via telephone every week. The control subjects, on the other hand, received a manual on observation of signs and symptoms of preterm labor when having those signs and symptoms, in addition to routine nursing care. Data were collected by following up on the gestational age at delivery. Data were analyzed in terms of relative risk and Mann Whitney-U. The findings showed that the experimental group had a lower preterm birth rate (9.3% and 13.5%, RR=0.688, 95% CI 0.233 and 2.031), higher mean gestational age at delivery (U=1292, Z=-0.709, P=0.479), and a higher mean gestational age at preterm delivery (U=15, Z=-0.407, P=0.755), but these were not statistically significant. These results may be influenced by Thai culture and telephone follow up, which may have limited partnership development and information sharing. In addition, some problems also require the family to get involved in solving problems. However, screening and monitoring of pregnant women at risk of preterm birth can still be clinically significant and should be continued in the antenatal clinic, and further study should be conducted on a larger sample size.