Fear of litigation and perceived safety concerns are among the most prevalent factors that influence the decision of clinicians to perform a caesarean section (C-section), according to a study carried out by Trinity’s School of Nursing and Midwifery.
Thirty-four studies in 20 countries were reviewed by Trinity researchers, who discovered that personal convenience and interprofessional conflict are also factors that are considered when C-sections are being performed.
The views of over 9,000 midwives and obstetricians were recorded over a 24-year period to determine what factors were contributing to the rising rate of C-sections worldwide.
The study’s lead author Sunita Panda, a PhD candidate in the School of Nursing and Midwifery, said in a press statement that this trend is “a big concern for health care professionals because vaginal birth is safer and associated with fewer complications”.
Lack of hospital guidelines, the influence of private health care systems and maternal request were also cited as factors that commonly influence the decision to carry out C-sections.
Prof Michael Daly, a specialist in human reproduction in University College Dublin (UCD), collaborated on the study. Daly called the research “innovative” in a press statement, and said roughly one in three births in Ireland are by elective or emergency C-section. “If we are to address this trend nationally, we need to better understand the complexity of the decisions made by women and their obstetricians”, he said.
