Carol R. Shelton, RN, PhD, Department of Nursing, Rhode Island College, 600 Mount Pleasant Ave., Providence, RI 02908, 401-456-9641, cshelton@ric.edu

Caesarean section deliveries are increasing among contemporary childbearing women. This phenomena may be influenced by a variety of factors including a loss of confidence among OB/GYN professionals in V-bac deliveries but also to an increasing demand for C-sections among otherwise low-risk women. The Women's Health Movement of the last quarter century placed much emphasis on the concept of reproductive choice for all women. This movement also provided women with confidence in their ability to have natural childbirths and was instrumental in improving the climate for the practice of midwifery in the United States. The right of women to choose a surgical procedure to have a child appears to be an abberation of the concept of choice. This paper attempts to explore this phenomena through the prism of the dominant ideologies that affect women's thinking and choices manifested in the media, both electronic, visual and print.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, the participant will be able to

• Identify the changes that have occured in the childbearing decisions women have made in recent years, especially in choosing to have caesarean section deliveries.
• Identify the social and cultural changes in women's lives that have led to this growing phenomenon.
• Discuss the ideological influences in society that affect the lives of women and the choices they make as mothers in 2004.

Keywords: Maternal Health, Midwifery

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.