{
  "abstract": "Introduction The first year after childbirth is a critical yet insufficiently monitored period for parental health. Postpartum mental and physical morbidity can affect both mothers and co-parents, but national longitudinal data remain scarce. The Stress Of Co-parents Related to A Traumatic Experience of birth across Switzerland (SOCRATES) cohort study aims to describe maternal and co-parental health and well-being trajectories during the first year after childbirth.Methods and analysis SOCRATES is a prospective, population-based cohort study conducted in all linguistic regions of Switzerland. Eligible participants include women aged 14 and above who gave birth to a live or stillborn infant (≥22 +0 weeks’ gestation and ≥500 g) and their cohabiting co-parents, provided they speak German, French, Italian or English. Recruitment was conducted in 81 of the 112 Swiss maternity units, birth centres and organisations of midwives over 6 weeks in spring 2025. Clinical data on pregnancy, childbirth and the early postpartum period are extracted from medical records. Postpartum hospitalisation data are obtained through linkage with national medico-administrative databases. Participants complete online questionnaires shortly after birth and at 2, 6 and 12 months post partum, including sociodemographic characteristics and patient-reported outcomes. The primary outcome is the prevalence of childbirth-related post-traumatic stress disorder at 2 months, assessed using the City Birth Trauma Scale. Secondary outcomes include depression, physical recovery, sexual health, quality of life, healthcare use, perceived care quality and overall well-being. A weighting procedure will be used to ensure representativeness and to account for attrition.Ethics and dissemination Ethical approval was granted by all seven Swiss ethics committees (number 2024-02262). All participants provided informed consent. Findings will be disseminated through national and international conferences, peer-reviewed publications, policy briefs, social media and stakeholder engagement activities.Trial registration number NCT06886841.",
  "authors": [
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Geneva School of Health Sciences, HES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland, Geneva, Switzerland",
        "INSERM, RESHAPE, UMR S1290, Université Lyon 1, Lyon, France"
      ],
      "name": "Laurent Gaucher"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Geneva School of Health Sciences, HES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland, Geneva, Switzerland"
      ],
      "name": "Thomas Desplanches"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Geneva School of Health Sciences, HES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland, Geneva, Switzerland",
        "Department of Women, Child and Adolescent, University Hospitals of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland"
      ],
      "name": "Jessica Sormani"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Geneva School of Health Sciences, HES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland, Geneva, Switzerland"
      ],
      "name": "Gilles Cattani"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Research Institute for Midwifery and Reproductive Health, ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences, Winterthur, Switzerland"
      ],
      "name": "Antonia N Mueller"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Geneva School of Health Sciences, HES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland, Geneva, Switzerland"
      ],
      "name": "Emilienne Celetta"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Research Institute for Midwifery and Reproductive Health, ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences, Winterthur, Switzerland"
      ],
      "name": "Isabel N Widmer"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Geneva School of Health Sciences, HES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland, Geneva, Switzerland",
        "Centre for Research in Epidemiology and Statistic, Université Paris Cité and Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, Inserm, INRAE, Paris, France"
      ],
      "name": "Elsa Lorthe"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Research Institute for Midwifery and Reproductive Health, ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences, Winterthur, Switzerland",
        "Midwifery Division, Bern University of Applied Sciences, Bern, Switzerland"
      ],
      "name": "Susanne Grylka-Baeschlin"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Health and well-being of mothers and co-parents during the first 12 months post partum: study protocol of the national SOCRATES cohort study in Switzerland",
  "uid": "cb2c2de6-8a60-5918-99ac-db17d75daea2"
}