Women's experiences and satisfaction with having a cesarean birth: An integrative review

With around one third of woman having a cesarean birth, better understanding of women's experiences of having a cesarean is vital to improve women's experiences of care. The aim of this review was to gain insight into women's experiences of and satisfaction with cesarean and to identify factors that contribute to women's poor experiences of care.

Using an integrative methodology, evidence was systematically considered in relation to women's experiences of cesarean birth and whether they were satisfied with their experience of care. To identify studies, PubMed, Maternity and Infant Care, MEDLINE, and Web of Science were searched for the period from 2008 to 2018, and reference lists of included studies were examined.

Twenty-six studies were included. Although the majority of women were satisfied with their cesarean, a large minority of women were dissatisfied and reported a negative experience. In particular, women who had an emergency cesarean were less satisfied than women who had a vaginal birth. Nonmedical factors or experiences that appear associated with dissatisfaction include (a) feeling ignored and disempowered; (b) experiencing a loss of control; (c) not being informed; and (d) birth values that favor vaginal birth.

Women's experiences of cesarean birth appear influenced by the circumstances (emergency vs planned), the extent to which they felt involved in decision-making and in control of their experience, and their birth values and beliefs. Increasing antenatal, intrapartum, and postpartum communication and shared decision-making may help engage women as an active participant in their own birth.