The effect of medical and social conditions on the mode of delivery: a prospective questionnaire-based study applied to 404 Turkish obstetricians

Purpose To identify the factors that influence provider’s decisions on method of delivery in a country where national cesarean delivery rate (CDR) among all births increased steadily from 21 to 56% in a 16-year period. Methods We planned nine birth scenarios, in which both delivery modes were plausible, and we used self-administered questionnaire to ask obstetricians for their preferred mode of delivery in these scenarios. If the choice was cesarean delivery (CD), the provider was asked to state the reason for choosing this method. We grouped respondents according to number of years in their occupation, working sector (state, university or private hospital) and academic degree. Results Four hundred and four obstetricians completed the questionnaire. Preference for CD in all scenarios was comparable between male and female obstetricians ( p = 0.334) and between specialists, associate professors and professors ( p = 0.812). The most frequent reason for choice of CD in all nine scenarios was fear of fetal risk and/or fear of litigation. Conclusion Fear of litigation was found to be the major factor influencing CD choice. This fear not only increases the CDR but also results in loss of training in breech delivery and operative vaginal delivery, forming a vicious cycle.