Learning Objective #1: Identify the six components of the enhanced model of professional labor support

Learning Objective #2: Apply the enhanced model of labor support to the care of women during labor and delivery

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Problem: Professional labor support (PLS) provided by nurses has been shown to promote positive outcomes for mothers and babies. The conceptual model of (PLS) is generally accepted to consist of 4 components: tangible support, emotional support, informational support, and advocacy (Hodnett & Osborn, 1998). There is a need to test this model with a valid and reliable instrument that measures PLS. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to establish the validity and reliability of the Perceived Professional Labor Support Tool (PPLST), an instrument designed to measure women's perceptions of PLS during labor and to test the model of PLS using the PPLST. Research Questions: Is the PPLST a valid and reliable measure of perceived PLS? Is the PLS model supported by the PPLST? Design: Methodological study of the PPLST, a 30-item Likert-type instrument. Sample: 256 mothers who delivered healthy term infants by vaginal (91.6%) or Cesarean (8.1%) delivery at 5 different birth centers. Subjects were age 18-42 years (M = 26.1), gravida (M=2.3), para (M= 1.9), ethnicity (African American [9.9%], Caucasian [78.3%], Hispanic [6.7%], Native American [1.6%], Asian [1.6%], and other [2%]. Methodology: Subjects completed the initial PPLST within 48 hours of delivery. Willing subjects completed a second PPLST in 2 weeks. Data were analyzed using principal components analysis with varimax rotation. Results: The content validity and stability of the PPLST were established in this study. Internal consistency reliability was estimated (alpha = .94). Six subscales emerged: (a) caring (emotional support), (b) nurse's informal communication, (c) nurse's technical communication (informational support), (d) monitoring-competence, (e) professional comfort (tangible support), and (f) choices-concern (advocacy). Conclusions: The model of PLS is supported by the PPLST. Four subscales emerged that relate to the established conceptual model of PLS. Two additional subscales emerged that further enhance the PLS model: nurse's informal communication and monitoring-competence.