Pregnancy and Induction of Labor – Ten Questions To Ask

Always Bring Your B.R.A.I.N to your appointments and of course to your labor and birth.

This means that you should ask questions in order to give informed consent. If you don’t ask for your options, you won’t have any options in labor and birth. in 2016, 23% of women were induced.  When 50% of labor inductions fail, they end up in a surgical birth a Cesarean birth. See the questions, below.

Benefits 

What are the benefits to this procedure you are recommending? What results are you looking for?

Risks

What are the risks for doing this procedure? What if it doesn’t work or give the results you are looking to achieve?

Alternatives

Are there alternatives to going ahead with this procedure? What are the benefits and the risks to the alternatives?

Intuition

This means that once you have the information you should take anywhere from a few moments to a couple of days to assess the information and use your intuition to make an informed decision with your care provider.

Nothing

There is always the option of doing nothing and waiting for nature to take its course. Two important questions to ask are, Is mom okay and healthy? Is baby okay and healthy?

10 Questions To Ask If Your Care Provider Recommends Induction of Labor

  1. What is your induction rate?
  2. Why are you recommending induction of labor for me?
  3. What are the risks to my baby and me if I wait for labor to begin naturally?
  4. What medical evidence do you have that shows us that my baby is better off outside the womb than staying inside until labor begins on its own?
  5. Do research studies confirm that inducing labor in this situation is safe and will reduce my risk of an unhealthy outcome? 
  6. What happens if my induction fails? Will I end up with a Cesarean?
  7. Can we try more natural methods of induction before using drugs?
  8. What natural methods have been proven most effective?
  9. Is induction likely to be successful for me? Why or why not?
  10. Is my cervix ripe? (Your provider can tell you if your cervix is ripe and ready to efface and dilate by using what is called a Bishop Score. Women who are induced before their cervix is ripe are much more likely to have cesareans, even if cervical ripening drugs are used.)