Search and read at least one article on Respectful Maternity Care and share readings by replying in this discussion forum.
A study by P. Pathak (2020) is about the Perception of Women regarding Respectful Maternity Care during Facility-Based Childbirth. In their introduction, they highlighted that deaths associated with pregnancy and childbirth are recorded to be occurring in developing countries.
Respectful care during childbirth has been described as “a universal human right that encompasses the principles of ethics and respect for women’s feelings, dignity, choices, and preferences.” Many women experience a lack of respectful and abusive care during childbirth across the globe.
The concept of “safe motherhood” is usually restricted to physical safety, but childbearing is also an important rite of passage, with deep personal and cultural significance for a woman and her family. Because motherhood is specific to women, issues of gender equity and gender violence are also at the core of maternity care. Thus, the notion of safe motherhood must be expanded beyond the prevention of morbidity or mortality to encompass respect for women’s basic human rights, including respect for women’s autonomy, dignity, feelings, choices, and preferences, including companionship during maternity care. (WHO, n.d.)
Over three-quarters of the women said they had received overall respectful maternity care services, according to the study's findings. Despite the fact that the majority of the women in the study experienced the overall features of RMC, verbal abuse, physical abuse, delayed service provision, and not talking positively about pain and relief were all described as aspects of disrespectful care. Likewise, length of stay for delivery, time of delivery, and parity were identified as factors that influenced friendly care, timely care, and abuse-free care dimensions of RMC, respectively.
Understanding the incidence and status of RMC services is critical for establishing interventions at all levels of the health facility, as well as encouraging clients to return during their reproductive years. Every woman has the right to give birth in an environment that is free of disrespect and abuse. To improve service quality and make it more woman-friendly, more focus should be placed on providing woman-centered care in a courteous and non-abusive way. So, the health facility should focus on the interventions which ensure that every woman receives this basic human dignity during one of the most vulnerable times in their life.
References:
P. Pathak, (2020). Perception of Women regarding Respectful Maternity Care during Facility-Based Childbirth. Retrieved from https://www.hindawi.com/journals/ogi/2020/5142398/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=HDW_MRKT_GBL_SUB_ADWO_PAI_DYNA_JOUR_X_PJ_GROUP3&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIjeWor97Y9gIVxdCWCh0ZvgcZEAMYASAAEgKRxvD_BwE
WHO, (n.d.) Respectful Maternity Care: The Universal Rights of Childbearing Women. World Health Organization. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/woman_child_accountability/ierg/reports/2012_01S_Respectful_Maternity_Care_Charter_The_Universal_Rights_of_Childbearing_Women.pdf