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Traumatic childbirth experiences: practice‐based implications for maternity care professionals from the woman's perspective
Author(s) -
Koster Diana,
Romijn Chantal,
Sakko Elvira,
Stam Catelijne,
Steenhuis Nienke,
Vries Daniëlle,
Willigen Ilze,
FonteinKuipers Yvonne
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
scandinavian journal of caring sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.678
H-Index - 66
eISSN - 1471-6712
pISSN - 0283-9318
DOI - 10.1111/scs.12786
Subject(s) - childbirth , feeling , grounded theory , nursing , maternity care , exploratory research , intrapersonal communication , qualitative research , medicine , informed consent , psychology , health care , pregnancy , interpersonal communication , social psychology , alternative medicine , sociology , genetics , biology , social science , pathology , anthropology , economics , economic growth
Objective To explore women's traumatic childbirth experiences in order to make maternity care professionals more aware of women's intrapartum care needs. Method A qualitative exploratory study with a constant comparison/grounded theory design was performed. Thirty‐six interviews were conducted with women who had given birth in a Dutch birth setting. Findings Three themes, playing a profound role in the occurrence of traumatic birth experiences, emerged: (i) lack of information and consent – maternity care professionals' unilateral decision making during intrapartum care, lacking informed‐consent. (ii) feeling excluded – women's mal‐adaptive response to the healthcare professionals's one‐sided decision making, leaving women feeling distant and estranged from the childbirth event and the experience. (iii) discrepancies – inconsistency between women's expectations and the reality of labour and birth – on an intrapersonal level. Conclusion Women's intrapartum care needs cohere with the concept of woman‐centred care, including personalised care and reflecting humanising values. Care should include informed consent and shared decision‐making. Maternity care professionals need to continuously evaluate whether the woman is consistently part of her own childbearing process. Maternity care professionals should maintain an ongoing dialogue with the woman, including women's internalised ideas of birth.