Informed Decision Making in Maternity Care

Goldberg, Holly Bianca

doi:10.1624/105812409x396219

Cited by 63 publications

(50 citation statements)

References 49 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Expectant women have the right to make decisions for themselves about their health care (Goldberg, 2009). Because of this, childbirth educators are often reluctant to persuade, worrying about pressuring women or interfering with their right to choose.…”

Section: What About Choice?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Persuasion: The Key to Changing Women's Ideas About Birth

Lothian

2009

j perinat educ

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Although standard maternity care is not evidence-based and, in many cases, increases risks for mothers and babies, few women make birth decisions that reflect this knowledge. This column discusses persuasion as a way to change women's ideas about safe, healthy birth. The relationship between persuasion and choice is discussed, and the differences between presenting information and persuading women that natural birth is the safest and healthiest way to give birth are explored.

show abstract

Section: What About Choice?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Persuasion: The Key to Changing Women's Ideas About Birth

Lothian

2009

j perinat educ

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Providing supportive care that allows laboring women to choose their preferred pain relief method, not merely the choice of an epidural, may help women maintain their sense of control and achieve their desired childbirth experience. As Romano and Lothian (2008) Offering informed choice during labor and birth, especially informed choice for labor pain management, is a documented ethical dilemma (Carlton, Callister, & Stoneman, 2005;Goldberg, 2009;Simmonds, 2008). Nevertheless, promoting childbearing women's choice and autonomy are important considerations when perinatal education and labor support are provided (Koehn, 2008;Lothian, 2008).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Giving Birth With Epidural Analgesia: The Experience of First-Time Mothers

Hidaka¹,

Callister²

2012

J Perinat Educ

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The purpose of our qualitative descriptive study was to describe the birth experiences of women using epidural analgesia for pain management. We interviewed nine primiparas who experienced vaginal births.Five themes emerged: (a) coping with pain, (b) finding epidural administration uneventful, (c) feeling relief having an epidural, (d) experiencing joy, and (e) having unsettled feelings of ambivalence. Although epidural analgesia was found to be effective for pain relief and may contribute to some women's satisfaction with the birth experience, it does not guarantee a quality birth experience. In order to support and promote childbearing women's decision making, we recommend improved education on the variety of available pain management options, including their risks and benefits. Fostering a sense of caring, connection, and control in women is a key factor to ensure positive birth experiences, regardless of pain management method.

show abstract

“…In addition to individual preferences, informed decision-making is dependent upon the availability and accessibility of choices and alternatives [Guadagnoli and Ward, 1998;Goldberg, 2009]. It is important that the decision to participate or not is made autonomously, without undue manipulation by others [Stiggelbout et al, 2004].…”

Section: American Journal Of Medical Genetics Part Amentioning

confidence: 99%

Informing on prenatal screening for Down syndrome prior to conception. An empirical and ethical perspective

Schoonen

Zee

Wildschut

et al. 2012

American J of Med Genetics Pt A

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In most Western countries, information on prenatal screening for Down syndrome is provided in the first-trimester of pregnancy. The purpose of this study was to examine whether this information should additionally be provided before pregnancy to improve the informed decision-making process. In an empirical study, we obtained data from pregnant women with respect to their preferences regarding information on prenatal screening preconceptionally. Questionnaire data (n ¼ 510) showed that 55.7% of responding women considered participating in prenatal screening for Down syndrome before pregnancy. 28.0% of women possessed information on prenatal screening preconceptionally. 84.6% preferred not to receive information preconceptionally in retrospect. In an ethical analysis, we elaborated on these preferences by weighing pros and cons. We considered two arguments against the provision of information on prenatal screening preconceptionally: women's preference to receive information in a step-by-step manner, and the risk of providing a directive message. We identified three reasons supporting its provision preconceptionally: the likelihood of making an informed decision could, firstly, be increased by ''unchaining'' the initial information from possible subsequent decisions, and, secondly, by providing women sufficient time to deliberate. Thirdly, the probability of equal access to prenatal screening may increase. To conclude with, we propose to incorporate an information offer on prenatal screening for Down syndrome in preconception care consultations. By offering information, instead of providing information, prospective parents are enabled to either accept or decline the information, which respects both their right to know and their right not-to-know. Key words: information on prenatal screening; down syndrome; preconception care consultation; informed decision-making; medical ethics; right not-to-know INTRODUCTIONPreconception care is a set of primary interventions that identify and modify biomedical, behavioral, and social risks to a woman's health and future pregnancies [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, 2006] Preconception care aims to optimize the health of the future child and to improve maternal health 485 [Health Council of the Netherlands, 2007b]. Information on prenatal screening for Down syndrome is commonly provided after conception, during the first-trimester of pregnancy. Many Western countries have policies or recommendations for prenatal screening for Down syndrome, in which either women of advanced age are offered invasive diagnostic testing (chorionic villus sampling or amniocentesis), or in which women, irrespective of their age, are offered non-invasive risk-assessment tests in the firsttrimester of pregnancy (nuchal scan, often combined with maternal serum evaluation) [Boyd et al., 2008;EUROCAT, 2010]. The latter screening tests provide an individual risk estimate of carrying a child with Down syndrome, and may be foll...

show abstract

Informed Decision Making in Maternity Care

Cited by 63 publications

References 49 publications

Persuasion: The Key to Changing Women's Ideas About Birth

Persuasion: The Key to Changing Women's Ideas About Birth

Giving Birth With Epidural Analgesia: The Experience of First-Time Mothers

Informing on prenatal screening for Down syndrome prior to conception. An empirical and ethical perspective

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About