Why do some health care providers disrespect and abuse women during childbirth in India?

Mayra, Kaveri; Matthews, Zoë; Padmadas, Sabu S.

doi:10.1016/j.wombi.2021.02.003

Cited by 37 publications

(66 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…The women's narratives display a patriarchal culture where their voices and choices have limited scope. When patriarchy permeates the birthing environment, medical interventions are prioritised over women's comfort, dignity and choice (Villarmea 2020; Mayra, Matthews & Padmadas 2021). Urmila shared praise about her doctor during the interview, regardless of the traumatic experience she narrated (poem 1).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Several studies report various aspects of women's lives, mostly violent; however, the description of this as obstetric violence or disrespect and abuse during childbirth is new and rising in Bihar, other parts of India and globally (Sen, Reddy & Iyer 2018;Mayra & Hazard 2020;Mayra, Matthews & Padmadas 2021;Chattopadhyay 2018, Dhar et al 2018Chadwick 2018). Women's right to give consent and to choose is essential for a positive birthing experience, especially in an obstetric setting.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Factors driving obstetric violence are best understood through intersectionality (Sen, Reddy & Iyer 2018). In Bihar, women face discrimination based on socio-demographic factors including, but not limited to, gender, marital status, religion, caste, occupation, skin colour, age, number of children, economic status, disability and personal hygiene (Patel, Das & Das 2018;Dhar et al 2018;Mayra, Matthews & Padmadas 2021). The resulting imbalance in power between the woman and care providers leads to women experiencing obstetric violence (Sen et al 2018;Mayra, Matthews & Padmadas 2021).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In Bihar, women face discrimination based on socio-demographic factors including, but not limited to, gender, marital status, religion, caste, occupation, skin colour, age, number of children, economic status, disability and personal hygiene (Patel, Das & Das 2018;Dhar et al 2018;Mayra, Matthews & Padmadas 2021). The resulting imbalance in power between the woman and care providers leads to women experiencing obstetric violence (Sen et al 2018;Mayra, Matthews & Padmadas 2021). This may result in women's voices and choices being disregarded, and in the act of not seeking consent and deciding for women as surrogate decision-makers in an obstetric setting (Madhiwala et al 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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‘Surrogate decision-making’ in India for women competent to consent and choose during childbirth

Mayra¹,

Matthews²,

Sandall³

2021

Agenda

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In a postcolonial, deeply patriarchal culture, decisions are often made for Indian women about every aspect of their lifebeginning with whether they will be allowed to be born. This is followed by every life decision, including education and marriage. A 'surrogate decision-maker' is a guardian who decides for an adult incapable of making their own decisions due to a mental health condition, or as a substitute based on a patient's stated or predicted wishes. However, the majority of Indian women are 'controlled' and 'allowed' or otherwise regarding everything. No choice in women's life is women's own, including decisions about deeply personal experiences such as giving birth.Our article is embedded in feminist epistemology and uses voice-centred relational analysis of interviews with four women from impoverished backgrounds in Bihar, India, to explore decision making around childbirth and throughout their lives. The surrogate decision-makers in the birth environment are: 1) healthcare and nonhealthcare providers, and/or 2) family members (who play the dominant role in every other decision about women's lives). They communicate amongst themselves about a woman's active bodily experience. Through I-poems we present women's varied levels of resistance and non-resistance to obstetric violence, which can be looked at as an extension of their response to violence in their routine lives. We find similarities in women's conditioning to endure, and argue that women should be the key stakeholders of their decisions about themselves and their bodies, which includes decisions about birth.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

‘Surrogate decision-making’ in India for women competent to consent and choose during childbirth

Mayra¹,

Matthews²,

Sandall³

2021

Agenda

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“…On the other hand, the present study showed that women living in rural areas are more likely to have home births, which is consistent with a recent systematic review (24). One possible explanation lies in the fact that pregnant women in rural areas feel fear that their privacy and traditions are not going to be respected in health facilities, and some indicated that they were afraid of being victims of abuse by health professionals (25)(26)(27), which highlights the marked gap between the rural population and health care.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Factors associated with home birth in Peru: An analysis of the Demographic and Health Survey, 2019

J¹,

Santos-Rosales²,

Moquillaza-Alcantara³

2021

Preprint

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Objective: To determine the proportion and factors associated with home birth in Peru, 2019. Material and methods: Cross-sectional analytical design study where the 2019 Peruvian Demographic and Family Health Survey was analyzed. The association was evaluated using Poisson Regression, supplemented with the crude prevalence ratio (cPR) and adjusted (aPR). Results: The records of 18,401 women were evaluated, where 5.39% (95%CI:4.83-6.03%) presented home birth. The probability of a home birth occurs increases when the pregnant woman is from the andean (aPR:1.24; 95%CI:1.02-1.48) and amazon region (aPR:1.38; 95%CI:1.16-1.64), resides in rural areas (aPR:3.34; 95%CI:2.61-4.29), presents less than 6 prenatal care (aPR:1.66; 95%CI:1.39 -1.96), it is very poor (aPR:9.62; 95%CI:5.13-18.1) or poor (aPR:2.39; 95%CI:1.26-4.52), it has not studied (aPR:2.66; 95%CI:2.02-3.50) or reached primary education (aPR:2.18: 95%CI:1.85-2.58) and has 2 children (aPR:1.64; 95%CI:1.46-1.85) or 3 or more children (aPR:2.18; 95%CI:1.67-2.87). On the other hand, having higher educational instruction (aPR:0.49; 95%CI:0.31-0.78) is associated with a lower probability of a home birth. Conclusions: There is a low proportion of home births; however, this indicator increases significantly according to various geographical, sociodemographic, and obstetric factors that have been identified.

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Obstetric Violence: An Intersectional Refraction through Abolition Feminism

Waal

Mayra²,

Horn

et al. 2022

Feminist Anthropology

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Obstetric violence, a term coined by activists in Latin America to describe violence during pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum, is a controversial feminist term in global health policymaking as well as in obstetric and midwifery practice and research. We reflect on the term both theoretically and autoethnographically to demonstrate its feminist value in addressing the problem of violence as embedded within the obstetric institution. We argue that obstetric violence as an activist and critical feminist concept can only be effective for change when it is clearly understood as institutionalized intersectional violence. Therefore, we propose an abolitionist framework for further study. Through this lens, we refract the concept of obstetric violence as institutionalized, intersectional, and racializing violence by (1) making an abolitionist historiography of the obstetric institution, and (2) centering anti‐Black obstetric racism as the anchor point of obstetric violence, where the afterlife of slavery, racial capitalism, the impact of systemic racism, and the consequences of patriarchal biopolitics come together. Abolition provides a unique approach to study obstetric violence since it not only refuses and dismantles violent institutions, but specifically focuses on building futures out of existing alternative practices toward a life‐affirming world of care. We locate the abolitionist futures of maternity care in Black, Indigenous, and independent doula and midwifery practices.

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Why do some health care providers disrespect and abuse women during childbirth in India?

Cited by 37 publications

References 41 publications

‘Surrogate decision-making’ in India for women competent to consent and choose during childbirth

‘Surrogate decision-making’ in India for women competent to consent and choose during childbirth

Factors associated with home birth in Peru: An analysis of the Demographic and Health Survey, 2019

Obstetric Violence: An Intersectional Refraction through Abolition Feminism

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