Project on consent in Irish maternity care secures Research Ireland funding
Posted on: 09 September 2025
A new research project, investigating consent to medical treatment in Irish maternity care, has received funding from Research Ireland under the COALESCE programme.
Research Ireland’s Collaborative Alliances for Societal Challenges (COALESCE) programme – now in its fifth cycle – supports excellent research across a broad range of disciplines, tackling national and international challenges.
The CONTENT Study (Consent for Medically Indicated Interventions in Childbirth) is one of 19 successful projects being funded under the current round of the programme. The project is being undertaken by Andrea Mulligan, School of Law and Joan Lalor, School of Nursing and Midwifery.
The team comprising two lawyers, a midwife, an obstetrician and an ethicist will investigate whether the legal principles that govern consent to treatment are applied in practice in Irish maternity care.
Dr Andrea Mulligan, School of Law, explains:
“The objective of this project is to investigate the divergence between the legal requirements for consent to birth interventions and the reality of consent practices in Irish maternity services.
"The overarching research question is: are the legal requirements for informed and voluntary consent to birth interventions being met in Irish maternity practice? Ultimately, the project aims to deliver evidence-based outputs to improve consent practices.”
The team will survey and interview women, obstetricians and midwives, and examine the extent to which the legal requirements for provision of consent are being followed for women in childbirth. The project aims to influence policy and practice in this area.
Prof. Joan Lalor, School of Nursing and Midwifery, adds:
“Valid consent requires that a person is provided with all the information they need to make a decision and that the decision is truly voluntary, meaning that it is free from coercion of any kind. Negative interactions with caregivers during birth are associated with suboptimal outcomes.
"Ensuring informed consent is given is one way to minimise negative birth experiences and to reduce the incidence of traumatic births and childbirth-related post traumatic stress."