Respectful Maternity Care

Written by White Ribbon Alliance.

Safe motherhood is more than the prevention of death and disability. It is respect for every woman’s humanity, feelings, choices and preferences. However, too often, pregnant women seeking maternity care receive ill treatment that ranges from relatively subtle disrespect of their autonomy and dignity to outright abuse: physical assault, verbal insults, discrimination, abandonment, or detention in facilities for failure to pay.

In response to a growing body of evidence of disrespect and abuse during pregnancy and childbirth, the White Ribbon Alliance has joined partners to advocate for Respectful Maternity Care.

Break the Silence: Respectful Maternity Care

WRA has convened partners to harmonize efforts and jointly strategize on how to tackle disrespectful and abusive care. Together, we have developed The Respectful Maternity Care Charter: The Universal Rights of Childbearing Women and a suite of advocacy tools promoting Respectful Maternity Care in English, French, Spanish and Arabic.

Promote Respectful Maternity Care:

• Share the "Break the Silence" film on Facebook or Twitter

White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood

The White Ribbon Alliance is a global network united to end the scandal of maternal mortality. With members across the world and National Alliances in fifteen countries, the White Ribbon Alliance holds leaders to account for their promises of change, and campaigns for the policies and resources which can end the needless deaths of women in childbirth. 

Further reading on the White Ribbon Alliance

• Every Partner Counts: White Ribbon Alliance
• White Ribbon Alliance in Tanzania