BIRTH TRAUMA IMPACT ON THE DECISION ABOUT SUBSEQUENT PREGNANCY AND NUMBER OF PLANNED CHILDREN

Pojam postpartalne traume veže se za pojam posttraumatskog stresnog poremećaja (PTSP). Prema dostupnoj literaturi PP-PTSP razvije oko 3% žena. Neprepoznat i netretiran PP-PTSP ima dalekosežne posljedice na ženu, partnerske odnose, povezivanje s djetetom te utječe na društvo u cjelini. Glavni cilj ovog istraživanja je istražiti da li i koliko doživljeni PP-PTSP utječe na ženinu odluku da ponovno rodi i na broj planirane djece. Također, istraživalo se i koji su faktori uključeni u subjektivnu procjenu žena o doživljaju poroda te koliko je COVID-19 pandemija, kao nametnuti faktor, utjecala na zadovoljstvo porodom. Istraživanje je provedeno na 551 ispitanici kojoj je posljednji porođaj bio unutar posljednje tri godine. Istraživanje je provedeno online upitnikom u koji je bila uključena validirana skala za procjenu doživljene porođajne traume. Statističkom obradom dobivenih podataka došlo se do zaključka da je u istraživanom uzorku 9,1% ispitanica razvilo PP-PTSP te da ne planiraju ponovnu trudnoću. Način dovršetka poroda utjecao je na negativnu subjektivnu procjenu poroda. Antenatalni trudnički tečaj kod ispitanica koje su ga pohađale ima pozitivan utjecaj na subjektivan doživljaj poroda, dok prisustvo pratnje na porodu nema značajnog utjecaja na zadovoljstvo porodom. Veći broj ispitanica navodi da im je pozitivna komunikacija i interakcija s osobljem prisutnim na porodu pozitivno utjecala na subjektivnu procjenu zadovoljstva porodom. COVID-19 pandemija značajno je utjecala na ispitanice koje su porod subjektivno doživjele kao traumatičan. Potrebno je dodatno istražiti antenatalne faktore koji mogu biti predisponirajući za nastanak PP-PTSP-a, promovirati pohađanje antenatalne edukacije, raditi na sustavnoj edukaciji zdravstvenog osoblja na komunikaciji s rodiljama i podizanju svijesti o traumi.The term of postpartum trauma is related to the term of posttraumatic stress disorder. According to the available literature, about 3% of women develop postpartum PTSD. Unrecognized and untreated PP-PTSD has far-reaching consequences for women, relationships with their partner, and bonding with the child, thus so it affects society as a whole. The main goal of this research was to find out how much PP-PTSD affects a woman's decision to plan a subsequent pregnancy and the number of planned children, also it was researched how did COVID-19 pandemic, as an imposed factor, affect women's experience of childbirth. The study was conducted on 551 respondents whose last birth was within the last three years. The research was conducted with an online questionnaire that included a validated scale for assessing trauma experience. Statistical processing of the obtained data led to the conclusion that in the studied sample 9% of respondents developed PP-PTSD, and that they do not plan a subsequent pregnancy. The way of ending the labor influenced the negative subjective assessment of childbirth. The antenatal pregnancy course has a positive effect on the subjective experience of childbirth in the respondents who attended it, while the presence of an accompaniment at birth does not have a significant impact on childbirth satisfaction. A number of respondents stated that their positive communication and interaction with the staff present at the birth had a positive effect on their subjective assessment of satisfaction with childbirth. The COVID-19 pandemic significantly affected respondents who subjectively experienced childbirth as traumatic. Future researches should investigate antenatal factors that could be predisposing for developing a PP-PTSD. Recommendations for the practice are to improve communication with clients, work on the education of PP-PTSD, promote awareness about birth trauma and promote antenatal courses