Birth experience from the perspective of the fathers.

PURPOSE: As men nowadays often attend the delivery of their own child, they also have to go through the labor period. In this study, the condition of the expectant fathers attending labor was evaluated. METHODS: In 2016, fathers who went through labor with their partners in the University medical center of Mainz were interviewed within the first days after delivery and 6 months later. They received a "Fathers questionnaire" concerning their motivation, the valuation of their attendance, their emotions during labor, and concerning the service in the labor ward. Six months later, they also received the validated Impact of Event Scale questionnaire (IES-R). In total, 318 participants answered the "Fathers' Questionnaire", 226 the IES-R. RESULTS: Father's attendance during labor was considered to be beneficial for fathers themselves (254, 79.8%), for the mother (272, 85.5%), for the newborn child (187, 58.8%), for the relationship (234, 73.6%). Only four could not see a purpose in their attendance. 73 men (23%) felt helpless, 47 (14.8%) were overwhelmed by the situation, 116 (36.5%) felt fear, 299 (94%) were happy to be present at birth, 27 (8.5%) felt traumatized by experiencing their partners in labor. According to the IES-R, none of the 226 men surveyed showed all symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. CONCLUSION: Childbirth is related to positive and negative emotions. Positive emotions are predominant, but come along with negative feelings. In this survey, posttraumatic stress disorder did not occur among men after delivery. Nevertheless, fathers' needs should be kept in view.

Dr. med.--obsolete? A cross sectional survey to investigate the perception and acceptance of the German medical degree.

PURPOSE: To obtain the German Medical Degree "Dr.med." candidates are required to write a scientific thesis which is usually accomplished during Medical school education. This extra work load for the students amongst a lack of standardization and an M.D. awarded upon graduation in other European and Anglo-Saxon countries leads repeatedly to criticism of the German system. However, a systematic survey on the perception and acceptance of the German doctoral thesis among those affected is overdue. METHODS: Using an online questionnaire, medical students as well as licensed doctors were asked for the status of their medical degree, their motivation, personal benefit, time and effort, scientific output, its meaningfulness and alternatives concerning their thesis. Patients were asked, how important they value their general practitioner's title "Dr. med.". The resulting data were evaluated performing basic statistic analyses. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The title "Dr. med." does not seem to be obsolete, but there is room for improvement. The scientific output is good and only a mere 15.1% of the candidates do not publish their results at all. Moreover, while at an early stage motivation, appreciation and recognition of personal benefits from the medical degree are considered as independent aspects, they merge to a general view at later stages. The current practice is considered most meaningful by the ones who have already finished their thesis. However, there are discrepancies between the expected and the actual length as well as the type of the thesis indicating that mentoring and educational advertising need improvement. As for the patients, their educational level seems to correlate with the significance attributed to the title "Dr. med." held by their physician.