Women's experiences of outpatient induction of labour with remote continuous monitoring

Objective: to gain insight into women's experiences and preferences for induction in the home as part of a trial investigating the feasibility and acceptability of outpatient induction of labour with remote monitoring. Design: a qualitative study using semi-structured individual interviews. Interview transcripts were subjected to thematic analysis to identify the dominant themes regarding women's experiences of outpatient induction. Setting: a large maternity hospital in the North West of England. Participants: fifteen women who participated in the main trial of outpatient induction of labour with remote continuous monitoring. Findings: three main themes were identified; the need for women to 'labour within their comfort zone'; their desire to achieve 'the next best thing to a normal labour' and the importance of a 'virtual presence' to offer remote reassurance. Conclusions: women's preference for the outpatient setting of induction of labour is dominated by their need to labour within their comfort zone. Outpatient induction offered women the familiarity and freedom of the home environment, and the resulting physical and emotional comforts helped women cope better with their labour and improved their birth experiences. While remote monitoring offered some reassurance, women still depended on effective communication from hospital staff to provide the virtual presence of a health professional in the home. Implications: the combination of slow-release prostaglandin and a remote monitoring device may provide low risk women with an improved induction and labour experience. While ongoing studies continue to explore further the safety of interventions at home, this study has importantly considered women's views and confirmed that induction at home is not only acceptable to women but also that the outpatient experience is preferable to long inpatient inductions. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd.