The objective of this qualitative case study was to determine paternal participation as a companion to women during delivery. There were 24 fathers present during the labor and delivery processes accompanying their wives at the Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil, Clinical Hospital (Hospital de Clínicas). Information was obtained through participative observation and semi-structured interviews and was then submitted to content analysis (thematic type). The theme found was the experience of being a companion which regards the presence and the meaning of living the child's birth. The findings of this study showed that the fathers involved understood that being present, caring, and saying supportive words is part of their role as a companion during this moment. The fathers believe that the experience of living their child's birth, independent from the number of births which they may have already been experienced, is a unique event and an inexplicable moment.
Humanization of assistance; Humanizing delivery; Father-child relationships