First Births in Australia

In Australia, three main settings are available in which to give birth: hospital, home, and birth center. Nineteen women participated in the study . They were recruited using purposive and theoretical sampling. Purposeful sampling occurs where the phenomenon is known to exist. Theoretical sampling is the process of data collection for generating theory whereby the analyst jointly collects, codes, and analyzes the data, and decides what data to collect next and where to find them in order to develop the theory as it emerges. Unlike statistical sampling, theoretical sampling cannot be predetermined prior to the outset of the study, and sampling decisions emerge as the study progresses.
 Evidence suggests that women select their place of birth according to the level of choice and responsibility they wish to take in the birth: Women who choose out-of-hospital care tend to want more control over decisions regarding themselves, their bodies, and the birth environment compared with women who choose hospital care. 
According to the data that was collected, women who had given birth to their first baby were initially identified in the postnatal ward of a large tertiary referral hospital and asked to consent to being interviewed 6 weeks later. Women who had their first baby at home were contacted by their independent midwives and asked if they could be approached to participate. One first-time mother who had given birth in a private hospital, two first-time mothers who had given birth in a birth center, and two multiparous women (one hospital birth and one home birth) were also identified and invited to participate. Each potential participant received an information sheet that explained the purpose of the study and what would be required of participants. Each participant signed a consent form. Only one woman (planned hospital birth) chose not to participate.
The participants ranged from 19 to 37 years of age. Women who had had home births were on average 30 years old compared with 25 years old for the women who had had hospital births. All of the women had partners. Three women had university degrees (one in the home-birth group and three in the hospital-birth group). One of the home-birth women was transferred to hospital and had a forceps birth. All of the women who gave birth in hospital—except for one (forceps birth)—had normal vaginal births. Most of the women attended formal antenatal childbirth education (all of the home-birth group, and 5 of 8 in the hospital-birth group).  Compared to the women who chose home birth, the women who chose hospital birth seemed less concerned about personal decision making, more dependent on their caregivers, and more trusting of the medical system. As two women noted: Women who chose a home birth viewed medical interventions as negative and dangerous, while those who chose a hospital birth viewed medical interventions as positive.

Reference
Budin, Wendy C. (2008). Preparing for the First Birth: Mothers' Experiences at Home and in Hospital in Australia. Journal of Perinatal Education. Retrieved January 12, 2012 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2582407/.