Mean level of consensus for statements by factor 1 participants (mean levels of consensus for statements by factor 2 and 3 participants in parentheses for comparison)13
| Factor 1 (n=12) | F1 | (F2, F3) |
|---|---|---|
| Death is, and always will be, inevitable for some infants | +6 | (3, 3) |
| Peaceful death is more important than full intensive care treatment | +5 | (2, 1) |
| Better provision of community services once children are older would make it easier to continue treatment for extremely preterm infants who display evidence of disability | +3* | (1, 0) |
| Technology should be advanced to allow the most premature of infants to survive | +2 | (−1, 4) |
| There is a cross-over between neonatal and abortion services as both care for women at similar gestations | +1 | (4, 4) |
| Advancing technology has made the process of withdrawing treatment more difficult | +2 | (4, 4) |
| Technological developments mean that heroic measures of extraordinary means of support are overused | +1* | (2, 5) |
| Abortion providers and neonatal units are separate entities and the actions of one should have no influence upon the other | 0* | (2, 2) |
| The amount of technology used in the neonatal unit is a barrier which is detrimental to parent–infant bonding | 0* | (1, −2) |
| Infants born extremely preterm with life-limiting illness should still be given full intensive care treatment | 0* | (−3, −5) |
| Women should have the right to choose abortion up until 24 weeks of gestation | 0* | (5, −2) |
| Attempting to save infants <24/40 weeks is a large uncontrolled experiment | −1 | (−6, −5) |
| ‘Infants’ who are born alive following termination of pregnancy should be transferred to the neonatal unit for a trial of life | −1 | (−6, −5) |
| Saving infants <24/40 weeks is an inefficient use of NHS resources | −2 | (2, 3) |
| Neonatal unit treatment accounts for a large proportion of NHS resources and as such admission of infants <24/40 weeks should be restricted | −3 | (0, −1) |
| Older parents are better equipped to deal with the outcome of extreme prematurity | −3* | (0, −1) |
| It is wrong to knowingly bring a disabled child into this world | −5 | (−1, 2) |
| Life satisfaction is not possible if you have a disability | −6 | (−3, −1) |
All factors <0.05.
*Factors with p<0.01.
NHS, National Health Service.