Cultural Safety – Respect and Dignity We are often asked why cultural safety is an important part of respectful maternity care. Cultural safety incorporates physical, emotional, psychological and spiritual well-being. A commonly used definition of cultural safety is that of Williams (1999) who defined cultural safety as: an environment that is spiritually, socially and emotionally
Human Rights Day Human Rights Day is observed every year on 10 December The maternity care that women receive intersects with her human rights to physical integrity, self-determination, privacy, family life, and spiritual freedom. In applying and advancing scientific knowledge, medical practice and associated technologies; human vulnerability should be taken into account. Individuals and groups
Why have a Birth Plan? Maternity care in Australia includes antenatal, childbirth and postnatal care for women and their babies. A Birth Plan is a documented record of you preferences for your maternity care. A health professional for maternity care may be a Midwife, General Practitioner or Obstetrician A Birth Plan is one
Principles for maternity care – Still relevant today The Government of Australia published the principles in 2011 and they are still relevant today Maternity care should be evidence-based and woman-centred, and acknowledge pregnancy, birth and parenting as significant life events for women. Woman-centred maternity care is responsive to women’s needs and preferences, and enables them
Continuity of carer matters for childbearing women What is continuity of care? The National Maternity Service Plan defines ‘Continuity of Care’ as: “the practice of ensuring that a woman knows her maternity care provider(s) and receives care from the same provider, or small group of providers, throughout pregnancy, labour, birth and the postpartum period”
Don’t throw the birth plan out with the bath water! This welcome article explores the concept of legal consent and the use of birth plans to inform the consent process. The article reflects Safe Motherhood for All’s view of consent. A woman always has a right to informed consent and the right of refusal of care. Women
Women Deliver Conference 2016 Attending the Women Deliver Conference in May 2016 was an amazing experience and Safe Motherhood for All members met with others working to promote respectful maternity care. It was reinforced at Women Deliver that maternity care can either protect or violate the fundamental human rights of women. The concept of safe motherhood is usually
Skin-to-skin contact after birth reduces stress levels March 31, 2016 The benefits of skin-to-skin contact for babies after birth have been well documented. But what about for mothers? After all, they, too, have been on quite a journey. New research to be presented at the American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference & Exhibition suggests maternal
The characteristics of compassionate maternity care A better understanding of compassion can improve the quality of maternity care women receive. Compassion is making meaningful connections with women Using good interpersonal skills - combined verbal and non-verbal communication and active listening Providing dignity and respect Establishing trust - through establishing a partnership, being nonjudgmental and
I’m an Obstetrician. Home Births Can Be Perfectly Safe. We could not agree more. When the death of a newborn occurs it is a tragedy. However when it happens under the care of a doctor, it’s often treated as inevitable. Whereas, when a midwife is in charge, especially in a home birth, people are quick
