Safe pregnancy or conception does not simply encompass the prevention of complications and mortality among women. It also tackles women’s human rights such as autonomy, dignity, feelings, preferences, and companionship. Additionally, since motherhood has significant implications for a woman and her family, it is important to comprehend the various factors that account for respectful maternity care.
As a woman undergoes the arduous process of conception, one may expect for her to receive nothing but the best kind of care to ensure the safe and proper development of the fetus and the well-being of the mother. However, recent studies have found that abuse, disrespect, and violence against women in their maternal stage have grown in number all over the world. Some of the categories of disrespect and abuse that childbearing women go through include physical and verbal abuse, non-acquisition of consent, non-dignified care, discrimination, denial of care, and non-confidential care. These events of abuse and violence are disheartening given that mothers should be given utmost respect and regard by society especially since childbearing is no easy phase. Furthermore, these abuses no longer simply deny childbearing women of their rights to respectful maternity care, but also breach their basic human rights as women.
However, there are various ways to address these issues of abuse and disrespect for childbearing women. Some of these ways are the increase in the involvement of maternal health advocates on human rights issues, ensuring that the rights of childbearing women to receive quality maternity care are aligned with internationally accepted standards, and making the system and community accountable in upholding these rights. In 2016, the World Health Organization (WHO) released new guidelines to to imporve the quality of care that childbearing women receive in health facilities. It also included six areas of focus to ensure a better and more systematic approach in the provision of high-quality maternity care. These are clinical guidelines, standards of care, effective interventions, quality measures, and relevant research and capability building.
References:
Maternal Health Task Force. (2014). Respectful Maternity Care. https://www.mhtf.org/topics/respectful-maternity-care/
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