Bishop Score
Cervical dilatation
Cervical effacement
Fetal station
Bishop's original −3 to +3 scale (pelvis in thirds). If your unit charts station in centimetres from the ischial spines (−5 to +5), those numbers are not interchangeable with these.
Cervical consistency
Cervical position
0 of 5 components scored.
Interpreting the score
The bands are convention, not part of Bishop's paper. A score of 8 or more is widely taken as favourable and under 6 as needing ripening, but published sources disagree about the middle, which is why 6–7 is shown as its own band here rather than pushed to one side.
Parity matters. The same score does not carry the same meaning in a nullipara as in a multipara, and thresholds for proceeding are often set differently for each.
Dilatation, effacement and station each contribute up to 3 points; consistency and position up to 2. Maximum 13.
The score describes the cervix at one moment. It informs whether ripening is likely to be needed — it does not by itself decide whether induction is indicated, which turns on the reason for delivering.