The foundations of organised childbirth education emerged in the early to mid-20th century, when new approaches to labour and pain management began to challenge prevailing medical models.

In Kharkov, Dr I.Z. Vel’vovskii developed the Psychoprophylactic Method of Childbirth (PPM), drawing on Ivan Pavlov’s theory of the conditioned response. This approach proposed that fear and tension contributed to labour pain and that education and psychological preparation could reduce suffering. Around the same period, Dr Grantly Dick-Read, a British obstetrician, challenged prevailing medical approaches and proposed that fear was a major contributor to pain in labour. He advocated for education, relaxation techniques, and informed preparation as a way to improve women’s birth experiences. In the 1950’s  French obstetrician Dr Fernand Lamaze introduced psychoprophylactic methods of childbirth preparation to Western audiences. His work emphasised breathing techniques, structured antenatal classes, and the active involvement of partners.

Collectively, these international influences contributed to a growing global movement toward childbirth education — a movement that would later inform the development of organised childbirth education in Australia