{"id":4953,"date":"2023-10-06T11:10:11","date_gmt":"2023-10-06T09:10:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.elenaiannelli.it\/?p=4953"},"modified":"2023-12-21T10:45:14","modified_gmt":"2023-12-21T09:45:14","slug":"the-latest-who-recommendations-for-a-positive-childbirth-experience","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.elenaiannelli.it\/en\/the-latest-who-recommendations-for-a-positive-childbirth-experience\/","title":{"rendered":"The latest WHO Recommendations for a Positive Childbirth Experience"},"content":{"rendered":"

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In 2018, the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) published new recommendations on childbirth to ensure that standards of care<\/strong> for physiological pregnancies and births are applied worldwide.<\/p>\n

Facing an increasing medicalisation of the birth event, the WHO identifies 56 evidence-based recommendations<\/strong> with the aim of reducing caesarean sections rates and all those types of medical interventions, unnecessary for physiological cases<\/strong>, which can impact on the birth experience and should only be reserved for high-risk or complicated situations.<\/p>\n

During labour, the routine use of certain procedures, not without risk, interferes with both the innate capacity to give birth and the maternal experience, resulting in complications that, in the most severe cases, are accompanied by experiences of violence, trauma and depression. This is why the WHO has decided to develop a set of recommendations for a positive birthing experience<\/strong>, defining a set of good practice standards for the care of physiological deliveries.<\/p>\n

The recommendations do not only cover the clinical aspects of management and care during labour and delivery, but also focus on women’s psychological and emotional needs; they promote respect for each woman’s human rights and choices, following a woman-centred philosophy.<\/strong><\/p>\n

According to the WHO definition, the childbirth experience is positive when the woman’s personal and socio-cultural values are respected, as well as her expectations of delivering a healthy baby in a safe environment, with the continuous and qualified support of empathetic professionals and in the presence of a free-choice birth partner.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The key to reducing the rate of medicalisation is an accurate understanding of the physiology of childbirth and respect for the primary needs of the mother<\/strong> who, like all mammals, needs intimacy, to feel safe and secure. In the human being, the condition of protection<\/strong> depends on the perception of one’s own physical and psychological safety.<\/p>\n

The WHO promotes essential and respectful childbirth care, distinguishing between necessary and unnecessary interventions on the basis of scientific evidence. The 56 recommendations, 26 of which are new and 30 taken from previous guidelines, are divided according to the stages of childbirth. These recommendations have proven to have a positive impact on the childbirth experience.<\/p>\n

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Having a positive birth experience includes:<\/p>\n