Experiências maternas no trabalho de parto: um olhar em direção à teoria das necessidades humanas básicas

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Labour is a moment of intense physical, emotional, social and spiritual transformation in a woman’s life, demanding nursing care based on integrality and humanization. OBJECTIVE: To analyse maternal experiences during labour in the light of Wanda de Aguiar Horta’s Theory of Basic Human Needs. METHODOLOGY: Qualitative, descriptive and exploratory study, developed from semi-structured interviews with puerperal women assisted in a public maternity hospital that is a reference for low-risk childbirth in Maceió, Brazil. The interviews were audio-recorded, fully transcribed and submitted to thematic content analysis, according to Bardin, and subsequently interpreted using Horta’s Theory of Basic Human Needs, organising the findings into the psychobiological, psychosocial and psycho-spiritual dimensions. RESULTS: The narratives showed that labour is experienced as a complex event, marked by pain and physical effort, but also by fear, insecurity, the need for emotional support and welcome, as well as by the presence of faith and spirituality as sources of strength. The central role of nursing emerged in mediating this process, both in pain management and in qualified listening, clear communication and recognition of women’s beliefs and values. CONCLUSION: The study evidenced that the Theory of Basic Human Needs is a pertinent framework to understand labour in its wholeness and to indicate pathways for qualifying obstetric nursing care towards more empathic, supportive and comprehensive practices, in line with the principles of childbirth humanization and with the real needs of women in the birthing process.