Sensitive Midwifery - Issue 44 - October 2019

Dutch midwife Else Vooijs, and doula and nursing assistant Patricia Musarurwa, who both work at Healthy Mom and Baby Clinic in Je ff reys Bay, show how group antenatal care can benefit South African women and midwives. Together it’s better Taking pregnancy care to the next level Else Vooijs and Patricia Musarurwa of Healthy Mom and Baby Clinic I n 2016, the World Health Organization (WHO) launched its new recommendations for antenatal care with the subtitle ‘for a positive pregnancy experience’. Wouldn’t you agree it’s interesting that they chose this subtitle? It certainly shows that the ‘experience’ component of pregnancy is important. The 2016 WHO recommendations have some key changes to previous recommendations. Now, it’s advised to have eight or more ‘contacts’ in antenatal care, because ‘perinatal deaths can be reduced by up to eight per 1 000 births when compared to the four antenatal visits of the past’. The WHO also now uses the word ‘contact’ instead of ‘visit’ to highlight that a woman’s ‘contact’ with her antenatal care provider should be more than a simple ‘visit’, instead focusing on an active connection between a pregnant woman and the healthcare provider. The goal is to provide empowering care and support throughout pregnancy. The new model increases maternal and fetal assessments, helping to more readily detect adverse circumstances and complications; improves communication between health providers and pregnant women; and increases the likelihood of positive pregnancy outcomes. Not just pretty words Evidence showed that women from high-, medium- and low-resource settings all valued having a positive pregnancy experience , the components of which included: • The provision of e ff ective clinical practices (interventions, tests, dispensing nutritional supplements, etc.) • Relevant and timely information (dietary and nutritional advice, pregnancy ailment relief, birth preparation, etc.) • Psychosocial and emotional support by knowledgeable, respectful healthcare practitioners Pregnancy Continued on page 13 12 eSensitive Midwifery Magazine Issue 44