Influences on Decision Making Among Primiparous Women Choosing Elective Caesarean Section in the Absence of Medical Indications: Findings From a Qualitative Investigation

OBJECTIVE: Patient-initiated elective Caesarean section (PIECS) is increasingly prevalent and is emerging as an urgent issue for individual maternity practitioners, hospitals, and policy makers, as well as for maternity patients. This qualitative study sought to explore women's experiences of the decision-making process leading to elective operative delivery without medical indication. METHODS: We conducted 17 exploratory qualitative in-depth …