The Effect of an Educational and Supportive Intervention on Health Performance, Self-Efficacy and Maternal/Neonatal Outcomes in Pregnant Adolescents with presence of close relative as a continuous companion support: Study Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT)

Background: Early motherhood (EM) has been identified as a major challenge for women's health in most developing countries and is associated with adverse outcomes in babies and mothers. This study will examine the effect of educational and supportive intervention in pregnant teenagers and close relative as a Continuous Companion Support (CCS) on health performance, self-efficacy and maternal/neonatal outcomes. Methods: The present protocol is introduced a parallel randomized clinical trial study with 136 adolescences pregnant woman under 19 years who will be randomly assigned to 2 groups (intervention and control group). Participants will be recruited from Comprehensive Health Service Centers (CHSCs) in Fasa city. The intervention group will receive six weekly sessions of educational and supportive courses. Primary and secondary outcomes will be the assessed through the questionnaires (Self-Efficacy and Health Performance) and the maternal/neonatal outcomes, respectively. To follow the participants, we will evaluate the teenage pregnant by the follow up checklist to collect the data including participating in Educational/supportive courses, receiving complete routine care from CHSCs and presence of close relative as a CCS during pregnancy/labor, high-risk pregnancy symptoms, Apgar at first and 5Th minute, type of delivery, delivery complications. Data will be analyzed using SPSS software version 18. The level of significance in all tests have two-sided and 5%. Discussion: The results of the present research could determine the appropriate method to increase Health Performance and self-efficacy in pregnant teenagers. It is obvious that the presence of close relative as a CCS improves the quality care of the teenage pregnant to reduces the Maternal/Neonatal complications and the costs borne by the pregnant teenagers and their families. Trial registration : IRCT20230816059157N1 at 2023.08.28, prospectively registered.