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. 2022 Jan;32(2):330-344.
doi: 10.1177/10497323211055461. Epub 2021 Dec 1.

'The System is Not Set up for the Benefit of Women': Women's Experiences of Decision-Making During Pregnancy and Birth in Ireland

Susann Huschke  1
Affiliations

'The System is Not Set up for the Benefit of Women': Women's Experiences of Decision-Making During Pregnancy and Birth in Ireland

Susann Huschke. Qual Health Res. 2022 Jan.

Abstract

In this article, I draw on in-depth qualitative interviews with 23 women, conducted in 2019/2020, focusing on their involvement in decision-making during pregnancy and birth. The study is located in Ireland, where comparably progressive national policies regarding informed choice in labour and birth clash with the day-to-day reality of a heavily medicalised, paternalistic maternity care system. I represent the subjective experiences of a diverse group of women through in-depth interview excerpts. In my analysis, I move beyond describing what is happening in the Irish maternity system to discussing why this is happening - relating the findings of the research to the international literature on authoritative knowledge, technocratic hospital cultures and risk-based discourses around birth. In the last section of the article, I offer concrete, empirically grounded and innovative recommendations how to enhance women's involvement in decision-making.

Keywords: decision making; reproduction; childbirth; communication; doctor-patient; empowerment; feminism; gender; informed choice autonomy; nurse-patient; power; pregnancy.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Conflicting Interests: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Characteristics of the study participants.
Image 1.
Image 1.
Poster in an Irish labour ward (2019).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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