The Effect of the Perceived Social Support on Surgical Fears of Pregnancy Decision for Cesarean: An Emergency Department Example

This study was conducted to determine the effect of perceived social support level of pregnant women who applied to the emergency department on the level of surgical fear they experienced before cesarean section. The sample of the study consisted of 100 women who applied to the emergency department of a training and research hospital between 19.01.2022- 31.03.2022 and were given a cesarean section decision. Data were collected using the Introductory Information Form, the Surgical Fear Scale, and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support. Percentage distribution, mean, standard deviation, t test for independent groups, One Way ANOVA and Pearson correlation test were used to evaluate the data. It was found that the mean age of the women participating in the study was 29.38±5.98 years, 43% were primary school graduates, 67% did not work, and 85% lived with a nuclear family. The mean score of the women on the perceived social support scale was 57.30±17.58, and the mean score on the surgical fear scale was 39.23±19.65. There was no statistically significant correlation between the total score of the scale of perceived social support and the total score of the surgical fear scale (r=0.082; p=0.416). It was concluded that the women had a moderate level of fear of surgery, and the perceived level of social support did not affect the fear of surgery. In line with these results, it may be recommended to include training that addresses the possibility and process of emergency cesarean section in childbirth preparation training and carry out studies with larger sample groups.