Introduction: Labor pain is defined as acute pain that is a normal part of giving birth. The presence of a midwife during labor is very important. She is helping woman to cope with labor pain, as she must devote herself fully and know how to advise on the methods of pain relief that are appropriate for her at a given time. Frequent use of non-pharmacological or alternative methods of relieving labor pain can reduce the use of analgesia, which means lower costs and better results with less side effects. Purpose: The purpose of the diploma thesis is to present non-pharmacological methods of relieving labor pain and to investigate the experience of midwives using non-pharmacological methods of relieving labor pain in Slovenia. Methods: The first part of the thesis uses a descriptive method of reviewing professional and scientific literature, which was found through global databases: PubMed, ScienceDirect, COBISS, Midwifery Research, Wiley Online Library and Cochrane Library. In the second part of the diploma thesis, a qualitative method of data collection was used, where semi-structured interviews with nine midwives from three Slovenian maternity hospitals were conducted. Transcription and analysis of the obtained results were then performed with the help of content analysis. Results: In the qualitative part, we identified eleven codes, which were divided into the folowing five categories: subjective aspect, knowledge and use of non-pharmacological methods of relieving labor pain, environmental impact, women`s perspective and midwifery challenges. Midwives are well educated in non-pharmacological methods of relieving labor pain and have extensive experience in using these methods. In the future, however, more education and practical training would be needed to gain experience with other ways of relieving labor pain. Discussion and conclusion: The presence of a midwife in the labor room is very important in the non-pharmacological relief of labor pains. Equally important is the presence of a partner or person who is very close to the woman, as this gives her a greater sense of security and consequently easier relaxation. In order to introduce more frequent use of non-pharmacological methods of relieving labor pain, a larger number of studies would be needed to gain in-depth insight into their impact, and consequently include new methods of non-pharmacological pain relief in perinatal care of women.
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