The purpose of this study was to explore women’s experiences of creating birth plans during pregnancy. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 21 women within the first year of childbirth, and an inductive, qualitative analysis was carried out.
As a result, the following 11 themes were extracted as women’s experiences of creating birth plans during pregnancy: “expressing my wishes and feelings toward childbirth”, “not knowing what to write”, “creating my own birth plan”, “worrying about how others will perceive me”, “wanting to create a birth plan with involvement from midwives”, “realizing my own thoughts on the birth of my child”, “putting my image of childbirth into concrete words”, “imagining the safety and uncertainty of childbirth”, “creating a birth plan with my husband and family”, “sharing my birth plan with my husband and midwives in order to give birth” and “preparing for childbirth with a birth plan”.
The findings suggested the importance of providing a detailed explanation on the purpose of creating a birth plan and empathizing with pregnant women. Furthermore, nursing care should include providing information appropriate for the pregnant woman and sharing the birth plan among the pregnant woman, her family, and health care professionals.