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Background Aim Methods Analysis Findings Conclusions Although prenatal care providers aim to prepare women for first childbirth, little research has explored retrospectively what birthing people would like to have known before first childbirth.To describe women's reports of what they would like to have known before first childbirth but feel they were not told.This is a secondary analysis of the First Baby Study, a large prospective cohort study conducted in Pennsylvania, USA. Telephone interviews were conducted with 3006 women 1 month after their first childbirth. Women were first asked: “Was there anything that you would have liked to have known before your delivery that you were not told?”. If “yes” they were asked a second question: “Please tell me what you would have liked to have known before your delivery”.A convergent mixed‐methods analysis including descriptive analytics to compare characteristics of women by answers to the first question, and qualitative content analysis of women's open‐ended answers to the second question.A total of 441 women (14.7%) reported there was something they would like to have known before their first childbirth. Women described that communication with care providers was their main concern. They would have liked a better understanding of their options before birth, more agency in decision‐making, and more information about the topics of their body, their birth, their baby, and what to expect beyond birth.Results highlight important topics for childbirth education, and the impact of gaps in shared decision‐making, patient–provider communication, and supportive care practices for first childbirth, especially where women have identified vulnerabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Childbirth education, which includes providing information and practical techniques to help manage childbirth, aims to support women and their birth partners. It is unknown how birth partners and care providers influence the utilisation of childbirth education information and techniques during women's labour and birth. To explore the literature that investigates the influence that birth partners and care-providers have on the application of childbirth education information and techniques used by women during childbirth. A meta-ethnography was performed using a systematic synthesis of reciprocal translation and refutational investigation. There were 22 papers included in the final synthesis. Quality appraisal was undertaken using the Joanna Briggs Institute Qualitative Assessment and Review Instrument (JBIQARI) quality appraisal tool for qualitative studies. An over-arching theme of 'you are either with me on this or not' emerged from the data, which expressed the positive and negative influences on the use of childbirth education information and techniques during labour and birth. The influence of birth partners was captured in the themes 'stepping up to their full potential' and 'a spare part'. The themes 'in alignment with the woman' and 'managed by another' were conceptualised from the data in relation to care-providers' influence. A theme, 'the right fit', described organisational and contextual influences. Birth partners and care-providers who are present during a woman's labour have significant potential to influence her use of childbirth education strategies in labour, which provides important insights for translation of evidence into practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectively about how they want to manage the birthing process. For the health professional, understanding the interplay of relationship variables, physiological stress, anxiety and individual reactivity may allow for the provision of more thoughtful evidence-based practice, which may increase objectivity, and aid communication and decision-making for women during birth. Bowen theory, as a comprehensive systems-based approach to understanding human functioning under stress, offers a novel approach to exploring the application of CBE during birth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Childbirth and parent education (CBE) classes changed dramatically during COVID-19. • Women felt largely unprepared for birth, impacting their sense of isolation. • Impact on future delivery of CBE, such as integration of classes with hybrid models. • Workforce upskilling is needed in line with changing healthcare system in Australia. • Changes to classes in COVID impacted women's experiences of birth and parenting. As changes to Childbirth and Parenting Education (CBPE) classes during the COVID-19 pandemic remain unexplored in Australia, our objective was to understand how changes to CBPE in Australia during the COVID-19 pandemic impacted on women's birth and postnatal experiences. Survey responses were received from 3172 women (1343 pregnant and 1829 postnatal) for the 'Birth In The Time Of Covid-19 (BITTOC)' survey (August 2020 to February 2021) in Australia. One of the survey questions asked women if they had experienced changes to CBPE class schedules or format during the pandemic, with a follow up open ended text box inviting women to comment on the impact of these changes. The majority of women experienced changes to CBPE, with only 9 % stating they experienced no changes to classes. A content analysis was undertaken on the 929 open text responses discussing the impact these changes had on women's experience of pregnancy, birth and postpartum. 929 women (29 %) made 1131 comments regarding changes to CBPE classes during the pandemic. The main finding 'I felt so unprepared' , highlights how women perceived the cessation or alteration of classes impacted their birth preparation, with many reporting an increased sense of isolation. Some women reported feeling 'It was good enough' with adequate provision of online classes, and others feeling 'I was let down by the system' due to communication and technological barriers. Results highlight the importance of ensuring continued provision of hybrid/online childbirth education models to enable versatility during times of crisis. Gaps in service provision, communication and resources for childbirth and parenting education need addressing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]