TY - JOUR
T1 - Key dimensions of women’s and their partners’ experiences of childbirth
T2 - A systematic review of reviews of qualitative studies
AU - Benyamini, Yael
AU - Delicate, Amy
AU - Ayers, Susan
AU - Dikmen-Yildiz, Pelin
AU - Gouni, Olga
AU - Jonsdottir, Sigridur Sia
AU - Karlsdottir, Sigfridur Inga
AU - Akik, Burcu Kömürcü
AU - Leinweber, Julia
AU - Murphy-Tighe, Sylvia
AU - Pajalic, Zada
AU - Riklikiene, Olga
AU - Limmer, Claudia Maria
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 Public Library of Science. All rights reserved.
PY - 2024/3
Y1 - 2024/3
N2 - Background The World Health Organization 2018 intrapartum guideline for a positive birth experience emphasized the importance of maternal emotional and psychological well-being during pregnancy and the need for safe childbirth. Today, in many countries birth is safe, yet many women report negative and traumatic birth experiences, with adverse effects on their and their families’ well-being. Many reviews have attempted to understand the complexity of women’s and their partners’ birth experience; however, it remains unclear what the key dimensions of the birth experience are. Objective To synthesize the information from reviews of qualitative studies on the experience of childbirth in order to identify key dimensions of women’s and their partners’ childbirth experience. Methods Systematic database searches yielded 40 reviews, focusing either on general samples or on specific modes of birth or populations, altogether covering primary studies from over 35,000 women (and >1000 partners) in 81 countries. We appraised the reviews’ quality, extracted data and analysed it using thematic analysis. Findings Four key dimensions of women’s and partners’ birth experience (covering ten subthemes), were identified: 1) Perceptions, including attitudes and beliefs; 2) Physical aspects, including birth environment and pain; 3) Emotional challenges; and 4) Relationships, with birth companions and interactions with healthcare professionals. In contrast with the comprehensive picture that arises from our synthesis, most reviews attended to only one or two of these dimensions. Conclusions The identified key dimensions bring to light the complexity and multidimensionality of the birth experience. Within each dimension, pathways leading towards negative and traumatic birth experiences as well as pathways leading to positive experiences become tangible. Identifying key dimensions of the birth experience may help inform education and research in the field of birth experiences and gives guidance to practitioners and policy makers on how to promote positive birth experiences for women and their partners.
AB - Background The World Health Organization 2018 intrapartum guideline for a positive birth experience emphasized the importance of maternal emotional and psychological well-being during pregnancy and the need for safe childbirth. Today, in many countries birth is safe, yet many women report negative and traumatic birth experiences, with adverse effects on their and their families’ well-being. Many reviews have attempted to understand the complexity of women’s and their partners’ birth experience; however, it remains unclear what the key dimensions of the birth experience are. Objective To synthesize the information from reviews of qualitative studies on the experience of childbirth in order to identify key dimensions of women’s and their partners’ childbirth experience. Methods Systematic database searches yielded 40 reviews, focusing either on general samples or on specific modes of birth or populations, altogether covering primary studies from over 35,000 women (and >1000 partners) in 81 countries. We appraised the reviews’ quality, extracted data and analysed it using thematic analysis. Findings Four key dimensions of women’s and partners’ birth experience (covering ten subthemes), were identified: 1) Perceptions, including attitudes and beliefs; 2) Physical aspects, including birth environment and pain; 3) Emotional challenges; and 4) Relationships, with birth companions and interactions with healthcare professionals. In contrast with the comprehensive picture that arises from our synthesis, most reviews attended to only one or two of these dimensions. Conclusions The identified key dimensions bring to light the complexity and multidimensionality of the birth experience. Within each dimension, pathways leading towards negative and traumatic birth experiences as well as pathways leading to positive experiences become tangible. Identifying key dimensions of the birth experience may help inform education and research in the field of birth experiences and gives guidance to practitioners and policy makers on how to promote positive birth experiences for women and their partners.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85188946027&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1371/journal.pone.0299151
DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0299151
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C2 - 38551936
AN - SCOPUS:85188946027
SN - 1932-6203
VL - 19
JO - PLoS ONE
JF - PLoS ONE
IS - 3 March
M1 - e0299151
ER -