Aim To report a protocol for a qualitative study to better understand the key factors that influence decision making about pregnancy from women's perspectives and to use these data to develop a theoretical model for shared decision‐making tools for the multiple stakeholders. Design Mixed‐method design using online surveys (with validated components) and purposively sampled follow‐up semi structured interviews. Methods Funded from September 2020 for 12 months. Online surveys of adult women (aged 18–50) identified via all Wales kidney database (n ≥ 500), additional recruitment through multidisciplinary healthcare professionals, relevant third sector organizations and social media. Follow‐up in‐depth qualitative interviews with n = 30 women. Linear regression models to identify associations between shared decision‐making preferences and clinical and psychosocial variables. Qualitative interviews will use a visual timeline task to empower women in taking control over their narratives. Qualitative data will be fully transcribed and analysed thematically, based around a chronological and theoretical (theoretical domains framework) structure that maps out key challenges and opportunities for improved decision support in the care pathway. Visual timelines will be used during stakeholder consultation activities, to enable us to co‐create a map of current support, gaps in provision, and opportunities for interventions. Quantitative data will be analysed descriptively to characterize our cohort. We will assemble a multidisciplinary shared decision‐making intervention development group and provide ongoing stakeholder consultation activities with patient and public representatives. Discussion Outcomes will support new learning into; the ways women's knowledge of kidney disease may affect family planning and pregnancy, their needs in terms of psychological and social support, and how they weigh up the pros and cons of starting a family. Impact Evidence will inform the design of new shared decision‐making tools to better support women with the complex and often emotional decisions about having children while living with kidney disease.

Aims To identify the needs, experiences and preferences of women with kidney disease in relation to their reproductive health to inform development of shared decision‐making interventions. Design UK‐wide mixed‐methods convergent design (Sep 20–Aug 21). Methods Online questionnaire (n = 431) with validated components. Purposively sampled semi‐structured interviews (n = 30). Patient and public input throughout. Findings Kidney disease was associated with defeminization, negatively affecting current (sexual) relationships and perceptions of future life goals. There was little evidence that shared decision making was taking place. Unplanned pregnancies were common, sometimes influenced by poor care and support and complicated systems. Reasons for (not) wanting children varied. Complicated pregnancies and miscarriages were common. Women often felt that it was more important to be a “good mother” than to address their health needs, which were often unmet and unrecognized. Impacts of pregnancy on disease and options for alternates to pregnancy were not well understood. Conclusion The needs and reproductive priorities of women are frequently overshadowed by their kidney disease. High‐quality shared decision‐making interventions need to be embedded as routine in a feminized care pathway that includes reproductive health. Research is needed in parallel to examine the effectiveness of interventions and address inequalities. Impact We do not fully understand the expectations, needs, experiences and preferences of women with kidney disease for planning and starting a family or deciding not to have children. Women lack the knowledge, resources and opportunities to have high‐quality conversations with their healthcare professionals. Decisions are highly personal and related to a number of health, social and cultural factors; individualized approaches to care are essential. Healthcare services need to be redesigned to ensure that women are able to make informed choices about pregnancy and alternative routes to becoming a parent. Patient or Public Contribution The original proposal for this research came from listening to the experiences of women in clinic who reported unmet needs and detailed experiences of their pregnancies (positive and negative). A patient group was involved in developing the funding application and helped to refine the objectives by sharing their experiences. Two women who are mothers living with kidney disease were co‐opted as core members of the research team. We hosted an interim findings event and invited patients and wider support services (adoption, fertility, surrogacy, education and maternal chronic kidney disease clinics) from across the UK to attend. We followed the UK national standards for patient and public involvement throughout.