Women should be aware of the benefits of midwifery care compared to medical treatment when it comes to healthy pregnant women and a normal course of pregnancy and childbirth. In Slovenia, a medically managed model of healthy and pathological pregnancy is still in place, so midwives have a harder time establishing a trusting relationship when a woman enters the delivery room. Our work is guided by sets of guidelines and protocols that need to be followed to fit the time and place of events.
Communication plays a very important role in the birth process. In Slovenia, due to the current healthcare system, a midwife is not able to meet the birthing mother before childbirth. That’s why the first contact is crucial for building trust, so the midwife can guide the woman through the birth process properly. During labor, low-risk women should be free to choose whether to eat and drink, and healthcare staff are not entitled to restrict this. After birth, the baby’s comfort also needs to be considered, so it’s essential to enable the first hour after birth and thus skin-to-skin contact between the newborn and the mother. For the newborn, this is important for metabolic adaptation, from a bacteriological perspective, for thermoregulation, stabilizing heart rate and breathing, breastfeeding, and ultimately family bonding. The umbilical cord should be clamped at least 90 seconds after birth, vernix should not be removed in the delivery room, and the first bath should be done at least 24 hours after birth.
The highlighted areas (communication, listening to women, birth positions, eating and drinking during labor, the first hour after birth, first newborn care) are important factors that influence the birth experience even in pathological pregnancies and medically managed births. The only problem is that over time we can fall into routine; we work in an unmotivating environment, with not enough staff to ensure safe, high-quality care. We face a number of complications and can sometimes forget the basic areas that affect birth practices and women’s experience.
Photo: mesecmaj.si
