Intervention in childbirth: should we allow women to choose?

Abstract

The issue of whether women should be able to choose to give birth by caesarean section in the absence of pregnancy complications remains a controversial topic. To explore the issues and allow the public the opportunity to voice their views, academics at Bournemouth University organised a public debate on the pros and cons of allowing women free choice with regard to intervention. Two teams, each with a well-known user representative, an experienced practitioner and an academic, debated the motion: "This house believes that women should be able to choose caesarean section on demand." This paper reports the debate and the public vote on the motion.

• Authors: Vanora Hundley, Belinda Phipps, Maureen Treadwell, Charles Baker, Julie Horn, Edwin van Teijlingen
• Journal: The practising midwife (Pract Midwife) Vol. 16 Issue 11 Pg. 11-3 (Dec 2013) ISSN: 1461-3123 [Print] England
• PMID: 24386701 (Publication Type: Journal Article)

Topics

• Adult
• Attitude to Health
• Cesarean Section (psychology, statistics & numerical data)
• Decision Making
• Delivery, Obstetric (psychology, statistics & numerical data)
• Evidence-Based Nursing
• Female
• Humans
• Infant, Newborn
• Mothers (psychology)
• Patient Satisfaction (statistics & numerical data)
• Pregnancy
• Pregnancy Outcome (epidemiology, psychology)
• Professional-Patient Relations
• Risk Factors
• Socioeconomic Factors
• United Kingdom
• Women's Health
• Young Adult