The birth plan, although there are forms or templates to help the woman fill it out, can be a document written by the woman herself as she feels most comfortable, including the options she wishes, as long as they are actions recommended by scientific evidence.
Among the most common topics included in birth plans are the following:
- Accompaniment and companion participation.
- Special needs.
- Delivery room: type (if several are available), privacy, preference for using own clothes....
- Assistance and care during the dilation period: personnel, enema, shaving, feeding, position for delivery, mobility, pain relief options, use of support materials, bath or shower during dilation...
- Interventions during labor: fetal monitoring, pelvic exams, medications to accelerate labor, routine venous line cannulation, bladder catheterization, rupture of the bag...
- Expulsion period: pushing, episiotomy, birth and skin-to-skin, initial care of the baby, cutting the cord, initiation of breastfeeding...
- Delivery (delivery of the placenta).
- Baby care: preventive medications and vaccinations, hygiene, breastfeeding...
- Preferences for instrumental delivery or cesarean section.
In any case, for guidance, it may be a good idea to consult one of the available templates, even if the woman finally drafts her own birth plan document.
Read the full article on: What is a birth plan and how to write it, and does it have any advantages? ( 34).
Silvia Azaña Gutiérrez
B.Sc., M.Sc.
Graduate in Health Biology from the University of Alcalá and specialized in Clinical Genetics from the same university. Master in Assisted Reproduction by the University of Valencia in collaboration with IVI clinics.
License: 3435-CV
