Abstract

The attendance of fathers at the births of their babies was one of the most radical social changes in developed countries’ in the 20^th century. In US during the 1930s, barely half of American births took place on hospitals, with most men isolated in hospitals waiting rooms, while their wives labored undelivered. By the beginning in the late 1940s, many men began to find this isolation intolerable.

The arrival of NHS in the United Kingdom by 1948 meant for more women giving birth in the hospital rather than at home, but fathers were still preferred remaining in the pubs while their wives were laboring. The real change came in 1970s. The Peel Report stated that every woman should have access to hospital care when giving birth.

Today, men are encouraged all over world to attend their children birth, they feel involved in the preparations for birth by attending the birth classes so to get know the birth process better and have questions answered.

Keywords: Fathers; Labor; Companion Support; Childbirth; Health Care Providers

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