Iranian women’s perception on the determinants of birth experience: a qualitative study

Abstract

Background The prevalence of cesarean birth in Iran is very high. Having a negative childbirth experience is one of the reasons that primiparous women provide to prefer caesarean birth over a vaginal birth. This study is aimed to understand women’s perspective on what determines a positive or negative birth experience for them. Methods This qualitative study is a part a mixed method study that was conducted among primiparous women with a previous vaginal birth experience. The purpose of the main study was to develop a guideline based on Iranian primiparous women’s birth experiences. The quantitative phase of the study was a cross-sectional study where women’s childbirth experiences was measured in a survey via the Childbirth Experience Questionnaire-2. In the qualitative part of the study, women were invited for an in-depth interview via a random stratified sampling method based on their childbirth mean score (women with 10% of the upper bound score which indicated a positive birth experience and 10% of the lower bound indicating negative birth experience, n = 17). Conventional content analysis was used for data analysis. Results We extracted three main themes: (a) “Internal control”, (b) “External control”, and (c) “Support”. Possessing internal control, having a balanced external control to feel cared and feeling supported were the main reasons for women to feel positive about their birth experiences. Whereas, loss of internal control, imbalanced external control and unsupportive environment were related to their negative childbirth experiences. Conclusion Considering that women’s sense of control, the care and support that they receive can influence their childbirth experiences, there is a need for changing maternity policies and practices to highlight the importance of a woman-centred care to create a pleasant, respectful and positive memory for primirparous women who experience normal vaginal births.

The perception of childbearing sense of coherence among Chinese couples: a qualitative study

“…Previous studies have found that women’s understanding of their challenges, predictability and preparation of their situation, and ability to anticipate events concerning pregnancy and childbirth could help them manage pain and alleviate fear and distress during the perinatal period [ 6 – 8 ]. In addition, the ability to cope with adverse pregnancy events by mobilising appropriate resources could contribute to well mental health [ 9 – 11 ]. Moreover, a sense of meaning and purpose of childbearing may provide the motivational basis for the couples’ commitment and devotion to the parental transition [ 12 – 14 ].…”

Ebelik Bölümü İlk ve Son Sınıf Öğrencilerinin Doğum Algılarının Belirlenmesi

“…Artan sezaryen oranlarının azaltılmasında, kadınların sezaryen doğumu tercihlerinde etkili olan faktörlerin bilinmesinin önemi vurgulanmaktadır (10). Çalışmalarda kadınların sezaryen doğumu tercih etme nedenleri arasında olumsuz doğum algısının ve doğum korkularının önemli bir rol oynadığı belirtilmektedir (4,11).…”

“…Aynı zamanda, çalışma hayatlarındaki mesleki performansları, iş doyumları ve kendi doğum tercihleri de etkilenebilmektedir (17). Bu nedenle ebelerin nitelikli ve kaliteli bakım sunabilmesi için sahip oldukları doğum algısını tanımlamaları ve farkına varmaları gerekmektedir (11). Doğum algısı ile ilgili literatür incelendiğinde; çalışmaların genel olarak gebe\lohusa kadınlar ve eşlerine yönelik olduğu belirlenmiştir (12,18,19).…”