How a woman’s labour starts influences the chance interventions in labour. If labour starts spontaneously, there is less likelihood of interventions. If a woman has an induction of labour there is an increased chance of further interventions. In the above graph, spontaneous labour refers to labour that starts on its own. Labour artificially sped up refers to labours starting spontaneously but are artificially sped up with medication or breaking the bag of water.

Unfortunately, national statistics do not separate spontaneous labour and labour artificially sped up.  So the Australian national statistics combine these two together as spontaneous labour.

Induction of labour in PBB’s graph refers to one or more of the following interventions used to artificially start labour:

• Artificial rupture of membranes
• Balloon catheter to open the cervix
• Prostaglandins placed in the vagina
• Synthetic oxytocin drug to start or speed up labour

No labour is when a woman has an elective (non-emergency) caesarean before labour starts.

Since 1985, the World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended countries keep the caesarean birth rate between 10–15% to ensure mortality rates are kept low for mothers and babies (WHO’s last statement update was April 2015). Since 1995 the caesarean birth rate has increased every year across Australia. In 2020 the caesarean birth rate in the NSW maternity hospitals was more than double the WHO recommendation.

A small number of breech babies are born vaginally. Instrumental births include forceps birth and vacuum extraction. The caesarean birth rate includes both elective (planned) and emergency (unplanned) caesarean births.