Global Health Otherwise’s Post

🤰 Every woman deserves a safe and respectful experience during one of life's most significant moments—childbirth. Recent findings highlight concerns in labor care, where substandard practices or disrespectful treatment can deeply impact women's dignity and well-being. It's crucial to address behaviors, attitudes, and systemic issues contributing to these experiences. 🤝 Let's foster a culture of trust, mutual understanding, and collaboration among healthcare professionals, societies, and patient organisations. Together, we can uphold the highest standards of care, ensuring every mother's right to informed, respectful, and best-practice care is honored. 👉 https://lnkd.in/dssht8NZ 👉 https://lnkd.in/d_H6j2VH #RespectInChildbirth #SafeMotherhood #PositiveBirthExperience

Change of word - #Maternity #leave Policy to Maternity #Care Policy 📜While offering #equal 👨👩👧 parental leave to both mothers and fathers is a #positive step, it's essential to understand that the needs of new mother and father are #biologically and #psychological very different. 🤰Maternity is not just about embracing motherhood; it's a crucial period for a mother #physical recovery and #psychological well-being too, that no one talk about. ✅The concept of maternity leave is primarily to support the first 100 days of nursing the infant, which is vital for their sensory and cognitive development and protecting them against infectious and chronic diseases as per UNICEF and WHO guidelines. ✍️Gender-neutral policy make sense when it consider the unique need of both #Women as mothers and #Men as fathers. Organization needs to address unique challenges rather than just making unique policies. 🗒️Otherwise, studies often show that men are less likely to fully utilize their parental leave, while women frequently request extensions. 📝Policy can't be always gender neutral, it has to be more #inclusive ensuring difference has been addressed.

Fear should never be part of the childbirth experience. Unfortunately, many Black women express deep fears about maternal health. @Dr. Juan Michelle Martin, PT, DPT during our Bridging the Gap webinar revealed that some Black women she works with tell her: “I’m getting a doula because I don’t want to die.” This heartbreaking reality highlights the urgent need for better maternal care and doula support. Doulas help mitigate this fear by providing continuous emotional and physical support throughout pregnancy and birth, empowering women to feel safe and supported. As Dr. Martin shared, doulas are often the only advocates some women have during birth, helping to improve outcomes and reduce the need for unnecessary medical interventions, such as cesarean sections. 💡 Help us empower women with the care they deserve. Support our mission to provide education and access to maternal health services: buff.ly/3C0kJ2o Join us for our next Bridging The Gap session tomorrow with @Bridget Ochuko, PT, DPT, MPH as she discusses the accessibility of PFPT from her perspective as a recent graduate. When you register, you'll get access to our last two sessions live and recordings of our previous sessions. Register --> https://buff.ly/4d7ZJ6D #BlackMaternalHealth #DoulaCare #WomensHealth #BridgingTheGap #MaternalHealthEquity

In accordance with the Somali Health and Demographic Survey (SHDS,2020), only 41.8% of children in the neonatal period are exclusively breastfed. This percentage drops to 28.5% among children aged 4 to 5 months, resulting in an overall rate of 33% of children under six months being exclusively breastfed. What is the government doing to address this issue? Are there breastfeeding centers available for working women in government and market places? Will the maternity leave days be extended from 4 months to 6 months in the labor law? As important as it is to understand these statistics, concrete steps are needed to improve the situation.

The latest report from March of Dimes, "Nowhere to Go: Maternity Care Deserts Across the US," sheds light on a growing crisis in maternal health. Over 5.5 million women now reside in counties with limited or no access to essential #MaternityCare. This highlights the urgent need for systemic solutions to ensure that every family has access to safe and comprehensive maternity care. Read the full report and join us in driving the change needed: https://lnkd.in/eUzfjmGV

AIMS thanks the Birth Trauma APPG for their work in drawing attention to this serious issue, and all those who had the courage to share their stories with the inquiry. https://lnkd.in/ejacPezh We will be commenting on the recommendations in detail, but question whether yet another 'National Maternity Improvement Strategy' is the answer given the historic failures to implement previous strategies such as Better Births. https://lnkd.in/eN5jV3-5 #BirthTraumaInquiry #BetterBirths

Are due dates evidence-based?🤔 Not quite. Let's talk about Naegales Rule and how it's been shaping maternity care for centuries. Back in 1744, Hermann Boerhaave formulated a rule based on just 100 Dutch women's pregnancies. Fast forward to 1812, Carl Naegele added his twist, and here we are, nearly 300 years later, still using this outdated method.📚 Despite advancements in medicine, due dates are often determined by this ancient rule, assuming all women have a 28-day cycle and ovulate on day 14. The truth? Most first-time mamas give birth closer to 41 weeks, not 40. It's time for a rethink. With so much evidence against its accuracy, perhaps it's time to reassess how we calculate due dates and rethink our approach to induction. 💡 #StorkHelpers #RethinkDueDates #MaternityCare #EvidenceBasedPractice

BATTLING OVER BIRTH Black Women and the Maternal Health Care Crisis by Julia Chinyere Oparah, Helen Arega, Danita Hudson, Lina Jones, Talita Oseguera, produced by Tantor and narrated by me. https://lnkd.in/ghfnWyBd Maternal care and birthing plans differ greatly, and deserve attention that provides support for the individualized needs of all birthing persons. It was my honor to give voice to some of the realities of today’s best birthing practices. Thank you to Black Women Birthing Justice, the authors, the full team at Tantor, and to the countless courageous women that gathered in caring community to share their wisdom and experiences with us all. Battling Over Birth: Black Women and the Maternal Health Care Crisis reveals hard truths—powerful findings on the role of racism, coercion, inadequate prenatal care, the pressures undermining breastfeeding, and the lack of access to alternatives to a broken maternal health-care system as key threads of black women's birth experiences. Battling Over Birth, a new human rights report from Black Women Birthing Justice, shares stories from over 100 women who recently gave birth in California. The report reveals the culture of fear and coercion that has transformed birth into a battleground, a deep lack of trust of our hospitals, and a broken maternal healthcare system that fails too many black women. The report shakes up our understanding of where state violence happens, and who it happens to; putting the human rights spotlight onto a system that is often unaccountable to black communities. Battling Over Birth also provides solutions. It makes a series of recommendations, including community accountability boards to hold hospitals accountable; increased access to midwifery and doula-care; recruitment and training of more health-care professionals of color; culturally-competent, empowering prenatal and postpartum care; greater access to home birth and birth centers; and a sharp reduction in the use of C-sections. #newinaudio #nonfictionaudiobook #healthandwellness #reproductivehealth #birthingjustice

I believe this is a crucial topic that often goes unnoticed but is essential for both men and women to be aware of: pumping at work for breastfeeding moms. Being a mother in the United States can be challenging, especially when striving to embrace a natural approach, amidst the pressing need to return to work shortly after childbirth. As a mother of 4 with my first daughter born on June 5th, 2024, I understand the concerns many working and soon-to-be moms face regarding providing the best for their little ones. For those worried about this transition, here is an important piece of information - you are protected by law! Section 4207 of the Affordable Care Act amended the Fair Labor Standards Act to ensure that: - You are entitled to reasonable break time to express breast milk for your nursing child for up to 1 year post-birth. - Your employer must provide a private, non-bathroom space, shielded from view and interruptions, for expressing breast milk. This provision ensures that working moms can prioritize their child's well-being without compromising their professional commitments. It's essential for all moms to be aware of their rights and feel empowered to navigate this phase with confidence. #BreastfeedingMoms #WorkingMoms #ParentingJourney