Women Involvement in Decision Making to have Cesarean Section and their Postpartum Satisfaction

Objective: To determine the involvement in decision and satisfaction regarding the mode of delivery among women attending tertiary care hospital of Karachi, Pakistan. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at Dar-ul-Sehat Hospital, Karachi, from March 2017 to November 2017. All women admitted in the hospital whether from an emergency or outdoor who underwent for caesarean section and got the option of vaginal birth after first caesarean section were included. Information about women's involvement and satisfaction regarding their decision making of caesarean section were noted on 3rd and 4th day post-partum. All patients were provided with evidencebased information regarding risks and benefits of caesarean section versus vaginal birth after caesarean delivery. Results: A total of 200 patients were included, amongst them 185 (92.5%) women were involved in the decision of mode of delivery. In most of the cases, consent was taken by doctors (n=192, 96%), followed by nurse (n=6, 3%) and consultant (n=2, 1%). The consent was given by husband in majority of the cases (n=173, 86.5%). A significant association of job employment of father with women's involvement in decision making was observed (p-value 0.022). Moreover, women's involvement in decision making was significantly associated with explanation of procedure (p-value 0.021) and satisfaction with indication of cesarean section (p-value <0.001). Conclusion: The involvement of women in the decision of opting cesarean section as mode of delivery has shown a positive influence on the women's experience of childbirth.