Maternal Outcomes in Birth Centers: An Integrative Review of the Literature

The birth center, a relatively recent innovation in maternity care, is an increasingly popular location of birth. The purpose of this integrative literature review is to assess the research on maternal outcomes from birth center care.Using methods by Whittemore and Knafl, we conducted an integrative review of studies of birth centers published in English since 1980. Twenty-three quantitative sources and 9 qualitative sources describing maternal...