Abstract

The death of an infant during a pregnancy is profoundly traumatic, both for the parents, and for the healthcare professionals involved. We explored the attitudes and responses that Irish obstetricians have following direct involvement with an intrapartum fetal death – that is, the death of an infant after the onset of labour but before they are born. We interviewed 10 obstetricians who were working in a tertiary university maternity unit in Ireland with 8,200 deliveries per year. Obstetricians in our study were profoundly and negatively affected by personal involvement with an intrapartum death. Two main themes were central to their experiences: the doctor as a person, and supporting each other. The doctor as person was characterized by two sub-themes; emotional impact and frustration. Supporting each other was also characterized by two sub-themes; an unmet need and incidental support and what might work. Obstetric doctors who are directly involved in an intrapartum death are the second victims of this event and this is something that needs to be acknowledged by the public, by the healthcare system, by the media and by the doctors themselves. The development of effective emotional support interventions for all obstetricians is extremely important.