PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to conduct anoutcomes evaluation of the Hispanic Labor Friends Initiative, a collaborative program between the Ogden Mid-Town Community Health Clinic and McKay Dee Hospital in Ogden, UT which has a Hispanic population of 23%. Immigrant women are paired with a Hispanic Labor Friend (HLF) who typically establishes a relationship with the woman at 32 weeks gestation at a prenatal visit, provides support during labor and birth, assists in postpartum taching, and attends the six week postpartum visit with the woman at the clinic.

METHODS: Following IRB approval and informed consent, audio-taped interviews were conducted with a convenience sample of Hispanic women who had recently given birth, some of whom had the services of HLFs and some who did not. Study participants also completed an informed consent form, the Postpartum Depression Screening Scale, the General Acculturation Scale, and a demographic data form. Interviews were also conducted with HLFs, physicians, and labor and delivery nurses. The interviews were transcribed and translated into English as necessary and analyzed by the research team as appropriate for qualitative inquiry.

RESULTS: One woman said, speaking of her HLF, "I felt as though my family were at my side." Another study participant who did not have a HLF described linguistic barriers, "It is hard for me to communicate. When I gave birth in the hospital, the nurses asked me things, and I didn't understand anything. I stayed quiet." Results indicate improvement in perinatal outcomes and a high level of satisfaction in women served by the program, HLFs, and health care providers.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Personal and professional support provided by HLFs can be utilized to enhance outcomes in vulnerable childbearing women.