Vaginal birth after cesarean or recurrent elective cesarean section: What are the decision making processes of pregnant women in Turkey? A phenomenological study

Abstract

What is known about deciding the mode of delivery after cesarean section (CS) is limited. Our aim was explore women’s decision-making process since pregnancy. Constant comparative analysis was used in the analysis. COREQ checklist was used in reporting. The main theme was inability of having control. Four categories emerged; reasons for wanting VBAC, VBAC experiences, reasons for RCS, and RCS experiences. Women did not have an absolute say in their decisions. RCS experiences were defined as traumatic and VBAC experiences were defined as achievement that provided strength and pride. Findings contribute to the literature on increasing the success of VBAC the importance and encouraging healthcare professionals.

Keywords:

• Repeat caesarean section
• vaginal birth after caesarean
• decision-making
• mode of delivery

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to acknowledge the women, who participated in the study. We also thank the health professionals in the hospital where the study was carried out for the convenience they provided. The authors thank the healthcare professionals who facilitated the conduct of the study.

Disclosure statement

No authors have competing interests to declare.

Ethical approval

The study was approved the Kütahya Health Sciences University Non-Interventional Clinical Research Ethics Board in Turkey. All participants signed consent forms to participate in the study.

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.