Respectful Maternity Care
Pregnancy is a period considered to be both as a momentous event and a vulnerable time in a woman’s life. For nine months, an expecting mother will be facing physical changes that will affect her holistic health as well as her baby’s development. Here enters the great role that respectful maternity care plays in ensuring the well being of the mother and her child during the crucial period of pregnancy.
With this, it is extremely saddening how the World Health Organization notices a growing evidence of disrespect and abuse towards childbearing mothers. This is prevalent in very poor nations where caring, empathetic, empowering, and respectful communication is non-existent towards mothers.
The WHO advocates for the maintenance of privacy, dignity, confidentiality; assurance of freedom from harm and mistreatment; enablement of informed choice; and continual support during labor and birth - and this is what respectful maternity care means.
It is highlighted that respectful maternity care will be easily provided to mothers if health institutions will be structured in a way that will promote and support healthcare providers through skills development like training on values, transforming attitudes, and intrapersonal communication (Bohren et al., 2020). Moreover, Bohren et al. emphasizes the importance of ensuring adequate infrastructrte and an organized maternity ward in providing respectful maternity care to mothers. Through the staff’s improved working conditions, monitoring experiences of treatment, and setting up quality improvement teams within health institutions, an encouraging and healthy environment will be created for mothers in health institutions.
References:
Bohren, M. A., Tunçalp, Ö., & Miller, S. (2020). Transforming intrapartum care: respectful maternity care. Best Practice & Research Clinical Obstetrics & Gynaecology, 67, 113-126.https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1521693420300328
World Health Organization (n.d.). Respectful maternity care: the universal rights of childbearing women. https://www.who.int/woman_child_accountability/ierg/reports/2012_01S_Respectful_Maternity_Care_Charter_The_Universal_Rights_of_Childbearing_Women.pdf