08 Nov A to Z of Informed Choice
“The Right Choice can give you a memorable birthing experience as well as the best start to parenting.”
A = Ask questions and more questions till it makes sense to you and you feel you have been given all the answers you need
A = Apply this information to your own unique circumstances
B = Birth is normal, natural and healthy
B = Birth memories last a life time and profoundly affect women and their families
B = Birth can safely take place at home, birth centres and hospitals
C = Childbirth education empowers women to make informed choice in healthcare, assume responsibility for their health and to trust their inner wisdom. Childbirth education also helps them to have an empowered birthing experience
D = Decisions that are informed!
D = Don’t listen to everybody’s opinions and experiences – know the facts
D = Don’t be influenced by traditions, routines and society
E = Evidence based information gives you the ability to make correct, informed and enlightened choices. It is on this information that your choices should be made – not what your friends and family think or have experience but what the research says
F = Framing of information shapes choice profoundly
F = Facts, pros and cons are all needed before you can make informed decisions
G = Get your healthcare providers to provide you with their stats of birthing options they use. This will determine whether this is the right choice for you
H = Hope isn’t good enough, facts are what count
I = Insight is gained by acquiring knowledge
J = Just another statistic? Or are you going to research your options?
K = Keep on asking questions
K = Knowledge of alternatives available
L = Lack of information can cause you to make decisions under duress and be led to make decisions that suit your healthcare provider instead of you
M = Memorable experience – make your birth count
N = Notions and ideas are not the facts you need to base your decisions on
O = Options. Make use of the fact there are options available to you. Choose carefully – a midwife or obstetrician, your birth place – home, hospital, birth unit, your pain relief options, your birth options, your feeding options. These will all have an influence on your birthing experience and its outcome
P = Philosophy taught at childbirth education classes should be informed choice through the knowledge of alternatives
P = Place of birth choices – home, birthing unit, in hospital – what best suits you
Q = Questions. Make sure you are asking the correct ones as well as receiving all the answers to your questions
R = Research your birth options
R = Risks and benefits
R = Resources – know where to get the best resources for information
S = Stats from the hospital and doctor/midwife you intend to use – are these the stats you agree with and so want to continue with this healthcare provider
T = Take the facts and turn them in to a plan of what you want
U = Understanding is paramount to knowledge
V = Very smart to make informed decisions
W = Womens confidence and ability to give birth is either enhanced or diminished by their care provider and place of birth
X = Xcell yourself and keep searching for the correct information
Y = You can call the shots – it is your pregnancy and your birth
Y = You are the expert on your own life and family and you can make the decisions for you
Z = Zero in and stay focused on making informed decisions
“Attend childbirth education classes so you will be able to make truly informed decisions based on the knowledge of alternatives”
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