Request for cerclage research participants in England UK (social science)
Thank you to the moderators for permission to post.
I am a social scientist at the University of Exeter in England doing research on the cervical stitch (cerclage). This is not medical research - it focuses on experiences and meanings related to the cervical stitch and its role in making new people.
I am looking for women and family members to take part in my research who have experienced the cervical stitch in their reproductive lives since 2016 in England.
I am interested in all experiences and outcomes. I would like to talk to you about your experience of this form of medical care, what being pregnant means to you, and what this procedure can tell us about relatedness in families and how persons come into being.
Taking part would involve a sensitive and gentle conversation around these big issues. An interview could take place online or in person. In the past I carried out research into second trimester pregnancy loss including miscarriage and termination for foetal anomaly, and I have experience of pregnancy loss myself. I am very aware of the difficult circumstances which lead to the use of the cervical stitch, and I try to make encounters with research participants as supportive as possible.
If you might be interested in taking part, please contact me, Aimee Middlemiss, on a.l.middlemiss@exeter.ac.uk for further information.
The project is funded by the Wellcome Trust and based at the University of Exeter, which has carried out ethical review (Faculty of Humanities and Social Science Research Ethics Committee reference 10972359). Another part of the project will talk to medical professionals. The research is based in England only because the cervical stitch is recommended in a key NHS England policy.
Thank you for reading this, and I wish you all the best for the future.
Aimee