Reproducing neglect in the place of care: Normalised violence within Cape Town Midwifery Obstetric Units

Dutton, Jessica; Knight, Lucia

doi:10.1080/10130950.2019.1704481

Cited by 8 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…For example, many Brazilian and Indian midwives had previously trained and worked in hospital obstetric units and found it difficult to provide care in another way ( da Silva et al., 2012 ; David et al., 2012 ). In South Africa, alignment with the midwifery philosophy was found to be dependent on the motivation of individual midwives ( Dutton and Knight, 2020 ). In general, motivation was low, and disrespect and abuse were common ( Dutton and Knight, 2020 ; Malatji and Madiba, 2020 ; Oosthuizen et al., 2020 ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In South Africa, alignment with the midwifery philosophy was found to be dependent on the motivation of individual midwives ( Dutton and Knight, 2020 ). In general, motivation was low, and disrespect and abuse were common ( Dutton and Knight, 2020 ; Malatji and Madiba, 2020 ; Oosthuizen et al., 2020 ). On the other hand, the literature from Mexico and Pakistan described how, in at least some parts of the country, birth was viewed as a family/community event.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Indonesia and South Africa), the referral system did not always work well (e.g. difficulties in obtaining informed consent, complicated administrative processes, transport problems), which meant that access to emergency care could not always be ensured ( Diba et al., 2019 ; Dutton and Knight, 2020 ; Erawati et al., 2020 ; Homer et al., 2019 ). In Mexico, there were no established communication channels between the MLBCs and the referral hospitals, leading to delayed transfers when needed, and to clients being “scolded” at the hospital for attempting an MLBC birth ( Alonso et al., 2021 ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Which low- and middle-income countries have midwife-led birthing centres and what are the main characteristics of these centres? A scoping review and scoping survey

et al. 2023

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Which low- and middle-income countries have midwife-led birthing centres and what are the main characteristics of these centres? A scoping review and scoping survey

et al. 2023

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“…The challenge of mistreatment of women remains pervasive in the subregion and various manifestations of disrespectful care have been described such as verbal abuse, physical abuse, ineffective communication, discrimination and neglect [ 3 , 33 ]. In South Africa, neglect is considered the most prevalent type of mistreatment and has been associated with inequality in healthcare access and utilization [ 34 ]. Persistence of this public health issue requires concerted regional and local interventions at multiple levels to address the menace including political will and appropriate institutional policies [ 35 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Health workers’ and hospital administrators’ perspectives on mistreatment of women during facility-based childbirth: a multicenter qualitative study in Ghana

Adu‐Bonsaffoh

Tamma²,

Maya

et al. 2022

Reprod Health

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Background Globally, mistreatment of women during facility-based childbirth continues to impact negatively on the quality of maternal healthcare provision and utilization. The views of health workers are vital in achieving comprehensive understanding of mistreatment of women, and to design evidence-based interventions to prevent it. We explored the perspectives of health workers and hospital administrators on mistreatment of women during childbirth to identify opportunity for improvement in the quality of maternal care in health facilities. Methods A qualitative study comprising in-depth interviews (IDIs) with 24 health workers and hospital administrators was conducted in two major towns (Koforidua and Nsawam) in the Eastern region of Ghana. The study was part of a formative mixed-methods project to develop an evidence-based definition, identification criteria and two tools for measuring mistreatment of women in facilities during childbirth. Data analysis was undertaken based on thematic content via the inductive analytic framework approach, using Nvivo version 12.6.0. Result Health workers and hospital administrators reported mixed feelings regarding the quality of care women receive. Almost all respondents were aware of mistreatment occurring during childbirth, describing physical and verbal abuse and denial of preferred birthing positions and companionship. Rationalizations for mistreatment included limited staff capacity, high workload, perceptions of women’s non-compliance and their attitudes towards staff. Health workers had mixed responses regarding the acceptability of mistreatment of women, although most argued against it. Increasing staff strength, number of health facilities, refresher training for health workers and adequate education of women about pregnancy and childbirth were suggestions to minimize such mistreatment. Conclusion Health workers indicated that some women are mistreated during birth in the study sites and provided various rationalizations for why this occurred. There is urgent need to motivate, retrain or otherwise encourage health workers to prevent mistreatment of women and promote respectful maternity care. Further research on implementation of evidence-based interventions could help mitigate mistreatment of women in health facilities.

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“…In so doing, they miss the point that most feminist scholars of obstetric violence do not regard individual health care workers as the primary source of such violence but are working to make visible the sociosymbolic and structural relations (i.e., racism, sexism, and medical authority) that structure the rules, norms of engagement, roles, accepted story lines, and ways of relating in specific obstetric and maternal health care contexts. Indeed, feminist researchers (see Chadwick, 2017;Dutton & Knight, 2020) have argued that health care providers are themselves potential victims of broader structural disrespect and obstetric violence (e.g., their work is not valued, they are themselves often subject to bullying, and toxic work conditions).…”

Section: The Risks Of Naming Violencementioning

confidence: 99%

The Dangers of Minimizing Obstetric Violence

Chadwick

2021

Violence Against Women

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This commentary is a response to the article by Lappaman and Swartz, “How gentle must violence against women be in order not to be violent?” in which the term “obstetric violence” is critiqued. The authors argue that the term is harmful and does violence (to health care workers and even birthers themselves) and is not helpful to efforts to improve or reform maternity care. They suggest that we abandon the term and use less inflammatory descriptions (i.e., such as “mistreatment”) instead. While recognizing the inevitable risks involved in naming and writing about obstetric violence, I argue that these risks are necessary in the interests of struggling against unjust systems. I unpack the authors' critique and argue that it ultimately works to minimize experiences of obstetric violence, silence the voices of those that have been speaking out on this issue for a very long time, and casts doubt on the legitimacy of a concept that has only recently received global recognition (after a long and transnational struggle). These harms and dangers are not necessarily the direct intentions of the authors but are embedded in wider structures of power that are often incredulous, disbelieving, and dismissive in the face of testimonies and evidence of gendered and racialized pain/violence.

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Reproducing neglect in the place of care: Normalised violence within Cape Town Midwifery Obstetric Units

Cited by 8 publications

References 11 publications

Which low- and middle-income countries have midwife-led birthing centres and what are the main characteristics of these centres? A scoping review and scoping survey

Which low- and middle-income countries have midwife-led birthing centres and what are the main characteristics of these centres? A scoping review and scoping survey

Health workers’ and hospital administrators’ perspectives on mistreatment of women during facility-based childbirth: a multicenter qualitative study in Ghana

The Dangers of Minimizing Obstetric Violence

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