Skin-to-skin contact and what women want in the first hours after a caesarean section

Abstract Objective To explore women's experience of skin-to-skin contact and what women want in the first two hours after a caesarean. Design Audio recorded interviews were conducted with women as a part of a larger video ethnographic research study where video recordings, observations, field notes, focus groups and further in-depth interviews were conducted. Setting A metropolitan hospital in Sydney, Australia. Participants Twenty-one women who had a caesarean section were involved in interviews around six weeks postpartum. Analysis The transcribed interviews were thematically analysed. Findings Women wanted their baby to stay with them and have skin-to-skin contact, even if they felt apprehensive about providing this care. An overarching theme was, ‘I want our baby’ . Several subthemes also emerged: ‘ I felt disconnected when I was separated from my baby’, ‘I want to explore my naked baby’, ‘I want my partner involved‘, and ‘It felt right’. Key Conclusions Despite the challenges of providing skin-to-skin contact in the operating theatre and recovery, health professionals and institutions should recognise the importance of advocating for what women want including keeping women, their partners and babies together and encouraging continuous maternal and infant contact and skin-to-skin contact.