Person-Centered Decision Making Lesson

The concept of risk is always interpreted from a personal perspective and may not always align with the provider’s definition of risk (33, 34). For example, the distance to hospital, access to skilled personnel or specialized equipment, access to special foods or extended family support, and/or ability to engage in rituals, undisturbed, are all factors that may influence a woman’s immediate feelings of security and safety. Even when the place of birth is planned, people will respond differently to the labor  and birth environment depending on individual physical and life circumstances. Someone planning to deliver in the hospital may change their mind during labor and choose to give birth at home with a skilled attendant. Other persons may plan to give birth in a hospital but ultimately move to a different setting because of need for specialized medical care or environmental factors such as changes in weather or travel conditions.