Reactions to medicalised birth
Reactions to the medicalisation of birth have been various. For some women, the technology and surveillance that is brought to bear on the birthing body is welcomed as a comforting presence to help ensure that the baby remains safe and well. Whilst it is vital that we recognise this, it is worth remembering that it is the routine medicalisation of childbirth practised either as a form of defence or idiosyncrasy that is in question here. Many women, and others, have been critical of the medicalisation of birth and have sought ways of subverting this. Pressure groups, including the National Childbirth Trust, the Association of Radical Midwives and the Association for Improvements in Maternity Services, amongst others, have campaigned against many aspects of the medicalisation of childbirth. They have been particularly critical of the routine use of medical procedures, such as induction and episiotomy and continue to campaign for improvements in maternity care. Many women, often supported by some of the groups described above, also seek to resist and subvert intervention in childbirth. For some women, this may mean booking a home delivery. For others it may mean writing a birth plan, attending alternative childbirth preparation classes, or booking a water birth. The feminist movement has also been influential in the reaction against the medicalisation of childbirth. For many feminist writers, the obstetric medical domination of childbirth has denied women the right to control their own bodies and make their own decisions. They argue that women no longer have faith in their own bodies and are afraid of giving birth. Many midwives, and some obstetricians, have been critical of the medical management of childbirth in our society.
The BBC and the Open University are not responsible for the content of external websites.
|
