Could a randomised trial answer the controversy relating to elective caesarean section? National survey of consultant obstetricians and heads of midwifery

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Abstract
We aimed to survey all consultant obstetricians and heads of midwifery (gatekeepers to such a trial) practising in England between January 2003 and May 2004. We explored their views of women's requests for caesarean section without clinical indication and of a possible randomised controlled trial in a postal survey. We used semistructured questionnaires with closed questions followed by free text spaces to provide supporting rationale. Comparisons were made between professionals and according to parental status, sex, and type of unit where they worked. We used χ2 tests to compare the proportion of respondents saying “yes” to each question. Two of the authors (TL, CK) manually analysed qualitative responses.