Birth Experience of Women Giving Birth in Belgium

Birth Experiences of Women Giving Birth in French-speaking Belgium and Pathways to Choosing a Place of Birth

The aim of this research is to understand what motivates women giving birth in Belgium to choose a particular place of birth and their experiences of childbirth. This understanding is made possible by collecting qualitative data from women who have given birth (from the first month after giving birth up to one year postpartum). The objective here is to understand what motivates the choice of place of birth (with a focus on the notion of 'non-choice') and to gain insight into the childbirth experiences of women giving birth in Belgium. The researcher also meets with birth companions (perinatal health professionals and birth companions such as doulas, for example) to understand their professional practice and their choice of workplace (home, birth centre or cottage, traditional hospital ward, university hospital ward, etc.).

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Pregnancy Related
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: Qualitative Interview

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Estimated): 60

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Belgium
  • Woluwe-Saint-Lambert
    • Brussels, Woluwe-Saint-Lambert, Belgium, 1200
      • Recruiting
      • UCLouvain
      • Contact: Céline Chomé, PhD student; Phone Number: 027643635; Email: celine.chome@uclouvain.be

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Women having given birth within a year

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• have given birth in Belgium
• have given birth less than a year ago
• be of legal age
• volunteer

Exclusion Criteria:

• not having given birth once in Belgium
• being a minor

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Number of groups / cohorts

1

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort	Intervention / Treatment
Women who have given birth; Qualitative interviews with women who have given birth	Other: Qualitative Interview; Qualitative interview with volunteering women having given birth.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Birth experience	The outcome is how women have experience their delivery. As it is through qualitative interviews, we can not yet specify the results.	Throughout the entire study, approximately during 40 months
Birthplace Choice	Which birthplace women have choosen, do they have the feeling they had a choice. If yes : how women choose the birth place, when and what influenced them in their decision. If not : who took the decision and why.	Throughout the entire study, approximately during 40 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Université Catholique de Louvain

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): September 8, 2025
• Primary Completion (Estimated): December 31, 2028
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 31, 2028

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: September 23, 2025
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: December 1, 2025
• First Posted (Estimated): December 4, 2025

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimated): December 4, 2025
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: December 1, 2025
• Last Verified: December 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Birth Experience; Birthplace Choice
• Other Study ID Numbers: NAISSANCE

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No