In 2006, the UN Foundation introduced a
blog: Reproductive Health Reality Check. The purpose of this blog was to
use the power of social/web-based media to offer a "reality check on the
misconceptions about reproductive health. RH Reality Check's rebuttal arsenal
against the — reckless rhetoric — used by opponents of reproductive rights
includes original reporting and opinion offered daily by in-house bloggers and
the broader reproductive health community, longer-form weekly series, video and
audio podcasts, and reference areas offering invaluable background on this
important issue." In January of 2012, RHReality Check become its own
independent, 501c3 non-profit organization.
"Protection
is our watchword—we are contributing to the global effort to empower people
with the information, services and leadership they need to safeguard their
sexual and reproductive health and rights against false attacks and
misinformation." ~ RHRealitycheck.org
Just
this week, RHRealitycheck ran the story of Rinat Dray - a 35 year old mother of
3 from New York who birthed in a Staten Island Hospital. Or she was
supposed to birth there. Instead, as the article states, the physician, who consulted with the hospital’s legal
department and made the decision to violate her will and her right to refuse
surgery by the forced cesarean. In her chart, the following is reported as
being entered by the attending physician “The woman has decisional
capacity. I have decided to override her
refusal to have a c-section.” No
additional documentation on the reason for the override has been given.
Without
knowing the entire story, it is impossible and unprofessional to make an across
the board statement. However, more and
more stories of forced cesareans are being reported world-wide and it is an
ominous trend. A study also was released
by Truven Health Analytics, a Michigan based company (with offices world-wide)
whose mission it is to help improve healthcare quality and access and reduce
costs, stated "Many C-sections are not
medically necessary and since these surgical deliveries can be dangerous for
both the mother and the baby, the medical community is increasingly concerned
about reducing the rate of non-indicated and elective C-sections when possible."
This, then, begs the question: If cesareans are more dangerous than
vaginal birth as well as being nearly $4000 more costly, why is the number of
cesareans rising? More importantly, the maternal/infant
morbidity and mortality in the US is not improving. This has become more about legal issues, convenience
and fear than good, solid evidence-based medicine. Apparently, decisional
capacity is no longer valid. Patients’ Bill
of Rights are void. We no longer have
partners in health care.
Women may no longer give birth
– they will be delivered.
Can we afford to be silent any longer?
Can we afford to be silent any longer?
Our lives begin to end the day we become silent
about things that matter. Martin Luther
King, Jr.
1 comment:
An excellent set of articles on this issue of complacency. Birth requires a unique and patient approach for every mom and family. But more and more our care providers are looking for the easy way out - standardization so the bar of care can be set low.
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