The Birth Experience Study started in Sydney, Australia in 2021.
The producers of the Australian documentary ‘Birth Time’ reached out to midwifery researchers at Western Sydney University to explore the use of a survey to release with their documentary.
Dr Hazel Keedle & Professor Hannah Dahlen used co-design practices alongside representatives from 10 maternity consumer and professional organisations to create a comprehensive maternity experiences survey.
The first BESt survey was released in March 2021 and was available in English and 7 other languages.
The survey was accessed over 12,000 times and resulted in 8,804 completed responses.
There are currently eight publications from BESt-Australia, explore them below.
The Birth Experience Study Australia is being repeated in 2026
We are currently in the co-design process and have a current expression of interest process for consumer organisations who would like to be part of a consumer steering group. EOI closes on 20th September 2025.
Expression of interest link: https://surveyswesternsydney.au1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0jEH0WuVoPoJTyS
BESt-Australia publications
