ArticleTzu chi medical journal
Effectiveness of the doula program in Northern Taiwan.
Article in Tzu chi medical journal. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 8 citations in OpenAlex.
- Doula Care and Health Outcomes: A Systematic Review.JAMA network open · 2026Pooled it
- The impact of Swanson's theory of caring on self-efficacy and pregnancy outcomes of primiparous women.Pakistan journal of medical sciences · 2025Article
- Article
- Comparison of maternal outcomes in caring by Doula, trained lay companion and routine midwifery care.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
2 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveThe cesarean section rate in Taiwan is 32%-34%, exceeding the rate that the World Health Organization considers reasonable. A doula is a trained woman who provides physical, emotional, and informational support to pregnant women before, during, and after delivery. This study investigated the effectiveness of a new doula program in Northern Taiwan. MATERIALS AND
methodsA quasi-experimental research design was employed. Two hundred and twenty women, divided into an experimental group with doula services and a no-doula control group receiving routine hospital care, participated in the present study. Participants' basic information was collected; the study tools were the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, labor pain visual analog scale, a labor timetable, and Mother's Level of Childbirth Satisfaction Rating Scale, which were distributed to participants during the postpartum hospitalization period.
resultsThe highest level of satisfaction was with the spouse in the control group and the doula in the experimental group. The results indicated that the childbirth process involved considerable anxiety in both groups. After delivery, the doula group exhibited a greater reduction in anxiety than the control group, but the reduction was not significant; however, a statistically significant difference was identified in the cesarean section (C/S) rate (13.0% vs. 43.2%) and normal spontaneous delivery (NSD) rate (87.0% vs. 56.8%) between the doula and control groups after controlling for the factor of primara.
conclusionProviding continuous doula program to pregnant women requiring labor support may reduce the C/S rate and increase the NSD rate. The regression model showed that the factors including high prenatal anxiety, total time needed for doula accompaniment, and epidural and analgesics use were associated with labor women receiving C/S. The factors of continuous doula support and oxytocin use were associated with receiving NSD.
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