The Effects of Delivery Room Admission Time on the Labor Process, Neonatal Outcomes, and Women’s Traumatic Birth Perceptions: A Comparative Study

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the effects of the timing of admission to the delivery room on the labor process, neonatal outcomes, and women's perception of traumatic birth. Methods:A cross-sectional, comparative study was conducted at a public hospital in southeastern Türkiye between December 2024 and May 2025.A total of 250 pregnant women were divided into two groups based on cervical dilatation at admission: latent phase (n=125) and active phase (n=125).Results: In the study, obstetric interventions such as bladder catheterisation, oxygen support, episiotomy and continuous fetal monitoring were significantly more common in the latent phase group.However, amniotomy was significantly more frequent in the active phase group.While overall neonatal outcomes showed no significant difference (p>0.05), the 5 th -minute Apgar scores and early breastfeeding initiation (within 30 minutes) were significantly higher in the active phase group (p