Both women and babies have rights during childbirth that should be afforded to them. Giving birth is a very vulnerable time for a lot of women. All your life you were told to keep your private parts private but when it comes to labor and delivery you will have to share them with an entire troop of hospital staff.
You will also need to provide consent for the healthcare team to act in the best interest of yourself and the baby, this means sometimes some of the ideas you had for your birth process may not be met. While this is normal and safe, you still want to make sure your rights as a patient are being upheld. The best way to do this is to know what those rights are.
Here we cover those rights and provide you with a wealth of information to help you become more knowledgeable about the entire labor process and your entitlements by law.
Women’s Rights During Childbirth
Women’s rights during childbirth have come a long way. A series of tragedies has brought this matter into the eyes of the courts who have now set clear standards around the issues that surround the rights of birthing women. We will address some of these below. Note that this list is not exclusive or exhaustive and there are other more comprehensive lists. This is however a great starting point for you to know your rights or to educate yourself about the rights of your loved one during childbirth.
- A woman has the right to refuse medical intervention regardless if this will cause harm to their child. The law stands by the mother’s right to control what happens to her body and this right trumps the rights of the fetus.
- A woman has the right to not be coerced into a procedure or treatment without her consent. The hospital however can refuse to treat a woman who is rejecting a particular facet of care.
- A woman has the right to ask questions about the care she will be receiving and also has the right to know what her alternatives are.
- A woman has the right during childbirth to request a second opinion, to ask for a different doctor or nurse, and should be obliged as long as one is available.
- A woman has the right to refuse consent to a procedure even if she previously signed a prenatal consent form. This right to refuse consent can be exercised at any time.
- A woman has the right to leave the hospital against the advice of the medical staff. Before making such a decision it is pertinent to note that this choice can limit the birth providers, settings, and quality of care a woman may receive during childbirth depending on where she goes.
- A woman has the right to request a supervisor or hospital administration representative if they feel as though their rights are being violated.
- A woman has the right to privacy during childbirth, so she has control over who is in the delivery room and can request for nonessential staff to be removed.
- A woman has the right to receive equal medical treatment regardless of disability, body mass index, race, HIV status, or any other factor.
Human Rights In Childbirth
Ethnic background and race play a huge role in the quality of care that women and families receive all across the world. Poor working-class minority women typically don’t get sufficient care in maternity settings. As such the infant mortality rate and the maternal mortality rate of these groups tends to be higher.
When abuse, disrespect, inconsistent or inadequate care, and obstetric violence create postpartum PTSD, it is clear that the goal for a “healthy mother and baby” has not been met. It also means that a woman’s human rights during childbirth have been violated.
What are the Basic Human Rights?
- The right to life is the right on which the fulfillment of all other rights depends. This right imposes an obligation onto the state to prevent killing or threats of killing while promoting conditions that are necessary for survival.
- The right to health ensures that all individuals have access to affordable and quality healthcare for the maintenance of well-being and health.
- The Right to privacy provides people with the ability to make decisions about family, sexuality and reproduction without the interference of the government.
- The right to equal treatment allows you to exercise all your human rights without being treated based on your personal characteristics, race, creed, etc.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What can you refuse during labor?
It is your right to refuse anything during labor even things you had previously consented to. Note that a hospital can refuse to care for you depending on what services you are refusing. You want to bear this mind when refusing services during labor.
2. Can a Hospital Turn You Away While in Labor?
Labor is a medical emergency under federal law, and so all hospitals that accept Medicaid and Medicare payments must take patients who are in labor when they come into their ER. Almost every hospital accepts these payments and so all should not turn away patients in labor.
You will read of many stories where pregnant women have been turned away from hospitals with the excuse that “we don’t deliver babies here”. This is true as between 1985 and 2002 obstetrical units in 760 hospitals across the United States were closed. Between 2004 and 2014 approximately 9% of rural hospitals lost their OB units. It was shown that counties with black residents had a higher chance (5 times higher) of losing their OB services.
As a result, patients are turned away because the hospital doesn’t have staff that is competent enough to handle labor complications, so they don’t take on the risk.
Though women are protected records show that women are still vulnerable to violations based on different reasons and based on the types of hospitals they go to.
3. How many centimeters do you have to be for the hospital to keep you?
When your contractions are coming every three to four minutes for over an hour and last around a minute you are in active labor. If this is your first delivery, you should go to the hospital at this point.
If you have had a child before your contractions are 5 to 7 minutes apart.
If your water breaks you should go to the hospital right away no matter what stage you are at.
How to Advocate for Yourself in the Delivery Room
There are many different types of providers of maternal care to include nurses, midwives, doulas, family physicians, and obstetricians. One international survey indicates that 1/3rd of women experience some sort of trauma during the birthing process.
At no point in your labor experience should you feel like you or your baby’s emotional well-being or lives are under threat.
To advocate for yourself in the delivery room you should set out a labor plan. This ensures that your wishes are respected even when you are unable to voice them.
If you can speak up then do that. You know what you are feeling within your body and speaking up can make the difference if something is happening that your healthcare team is not aware of.
Conclusion
Childbirth can be a scary experience, it is also a humbling experience. You want to go into the process knowing as much as you can about the rights that you have as a pregnant mother. You want to also know the rights of your baby. We know the information provided above will help you to be more confident as you go into that delivery room, and we wish you a happy and safe delivery for both you and baby!
Cris
