Assessing nursing students' perceptions of obstetric violence: A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND

Obstetric violence is a global issue that violates women's rights. To effectively address this problem within healthcare, understanding nursing students' perceptions of this form of violence is essential.

OBJECTIVES

This study aims to determine whether nursing students perceive certain clinical practices during labor and delivery as obstetric violence and to identify the factors that influence their perceptions.

DESIGN

A cross-sectional study design was employed.

SETTINGS: The research was conducted within a nursing program at a state university in Türkiye.

PARTICIPANTS

The study included 307 nursing students, with 45.3 % in their third year and 54.7 % in their fourth year.

METHODS

Data were collected through face-to-face interviews using a questionnaire that included socio-demographic inquiries, an obstetric violence awareness form, and a 44-item obstetric violence perception form developed by the researchers. Descriptive statistics were computed. The relationship between the total obstetric violence perception score and variables like age and clinical observation count was assessed using Spearman correlation analysis. Both simple and multiple linear regression analyses evaluated factors influencing perception, with p < 0.05 indicating statistical significance. Odds ratios with a 95 % confidence interval were calculated.

RESULTS

Participants had an average perception score of 178.80 (SD: 24.40), indicating a moderate awareness level of obstetric violence, although some clinical practices were not perceived as violent. Gender and academic year were identified as independent determinants; female students had awareness levels 12.620 times higher than males, and third-year students demonstrated levels 6.327 times greater than fourth-year students.

CONCLUSION

Nursing students were found to have a moderate level of awareness regarding obstetric violence, with their perceptions varying by gender and academic year. These findings underscore the importance of systematically integrating obstetric violence awareness into nursing education to foster respectful and evidence-based maternity care.

PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: No Patient or Public Contribution.