Childbirth with dignity
Last reviewed: 16.10.2021
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A quarter of a century ago in Poland, the nationwide company of the Foundation "Childbirth with Dignity" started. Women began to tell their childbirth histories, their tremendous stress, which they experienced, left alone, without the support of their loved ones, in the ward resembling a prison cell, without sufficient respect from the medical staff, deprived of the opportunity to be with their newborn child. Polish women began to call respect for women during childbirth.
The common problem of all women in childbirth at that time was a complete lack of personal space, support, both sides of relatives, and workers in maternity hospitals, as well as loneliness during this difficult period.
Most women underwent perineal incision, which made them feel humiliated, in addition, many did not receive anesthetic during this unpleasant procedure.
The rates of breastfeeding were low, and experts are sure that this is due to the fact that the mothers were deprived of the opportunity to be with their child.
It is worth noting that all these conditions caused strong emotional trauma in women, so the Foundation made every effort to ensure that other women could feel more protected during childbirth.
The company's specialists have made changes in the healthcare system that have received international recognition. First of all, husbands were allowed to be present at the time of the birth of the child and to support their woman morally.
In addition, the 24-hour finding of the child with the mother began to be practiced, the newborn was left to the woman immediately after birth and allowed to visit relatives.
This practice has led to the fact that almost for all women the birth of a child was a real joy, they no longer feel lonely, and the birth is now considered a family event. According to experts, this approach ensures a more peaceful and easy finding of the mother and child at home, even after discharge.
The World Health Organization also calls on all countries to respect women's rights, especially during childbirth, as in a number of countries women continue to suffer from disrespect and loneliness during childbirth.
Last year, a statement was issued in which WHO urged the health systems of all countries to strengthen the rights of women in childbirth and today more than 80 countries have accepted this call for execution.
Several years ago, Polish specialists issued the first "Standards of Medicaid in the Prenatal and Postpartum Periods", which correspond to the guidelines of WHO.
According to Polish standards, a woman has the right to choose where and how she will give birth, who will be present with her at this time, and also has the right to be with the child at least two hours after childbirth.
Today WHO together with the foundation "Childbirth with dignity", the Polish Ministry of Health control the quality of medical care and care for women in labor and newborns. In the near future, it is planned to introduce a methodology for the evaluation of maternity wards, which will help better monitor the adopted standards.
It is worth noting that after the improvement of medical care and care for women in labor and newborns, the health of both women and their children has improved significantly, in addition, the mortality rate among infants has been significantly reduced.
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