"We hear and we fear" – preferences of 1,203 women regarding conversations of the personnel during cesarean delivery.

Abstract Purpose: To evaluate the preferences of women undergoing cesarean delivery regarding the conversations of the personnel during the operation. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted by distribution of an open anonymous questionnaire in social media platforms during March 2022, aiming for respondents who underwent cesarean delivery at any time during their lifetime. Results: The questionnaire was completed by 1,203 participants. Conversations between the staff members were reported in 97.6% of the cases. Casual conversations were considered as “disturbing” by higher proportion of the respondents compared to professional talk (33.4% vs. 27.6%, respectively, p=0.0077), and as “relaxing” by a lower proportion (22.8% vs. 32.2%, respectively, p<0.0001). According to logistic regression analysis, factors associated with being disturbed by the conversations were higher levels of stress and pain experienced during the operation, and for professional conversations - urgent operations and second and higher order cesarean compared to first cesarean delivery. Respondents recalling direct communication with the personnel reported significantly lower levels of stress compared to the remaining cohort (60.8% vs. 72.5%, p<0.001). Conclusion: Intraoperative conversations of the personnel occur during the vast majority of cesarean deliveries. For some patients, these talks can decrease the anxiety, while for others such conversations increase the stress; thus, the optimal approach would be a preliminary assessment of maternal preferences. In addition, communication with the women during the operative course is of great importance.