Development of a home induction of labour framework.

Background Nationally, it is recommended that women should be offered post-dates induction of labour (IOL) at 40 weeks + 10–12 days. There is evidence that an outpatient IOL service may be associated with improved maternal satisfaction. Aims A home IOL service was developed to offer women choice about where labour onset can be awaited. Methods In an attempt to fully understand key factors and improve the local IOL service, a baseline audit of care and outcomes for low-risk post-dates women was undertaken (hospital group). A home IOL service was then set up (home group) for women to await labour onset in the comfort of their own home. Once this option was available, a second audit aimed to highlight any advantages or disadvantages with the new service so as to inform future improvement. Findings Audit findings highlighted that the majority of women remained at home for between 6–14 hours and all returned to the hospital safely. Conclusions Findings from the audits undertaken before, during and after the home IOL service was implemented, highlight useful benefits for women. It is recommended that other Trusts considering implementing the same improvement carefully monitor their findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]