Ch ch ch choices in pregnancy, labour & birth

Ch ch ch ch Choices

It is SO important to know your rights and the law relating to your body in pregnancy and childbirth.

Here's some things that you should know, that are the law in this country but so many couples I teach on my course’s are often not aware of...

~ Your body does not become someone else property because your are pregnant or in labour.

~ Your dignity does not 'get left at the door'

~ You should absolutely expect to be treated with respect and care at ALL times.

~ You have the right to make your own decisions about your body, just as you do at any other time in your life. Whether you are at home or in a hospital - nothing changes.

~ No one can treat or touch you against your will. This is the law.

~ You have to be asked and then give consent for anyone to touch your body or give you any medical treatment.

~ You cannot be treated unless you explicitly agree. That includes asking before examining you, before taking your blood pressure, before giving you pain relief.

Consent means saying yes.

To be really clear, it is against the law to give you medical treatment unless you agree to it. It is also against the law for treatment to be given to your baby without your consent or the consent of another person with parental responsibility.

Your consent to agree to treatment must be genuine, you must understand the treatment well enough to make a decision. It also means that no one (including any healthcare professionals - doctors, midwives, consultants) must put pressure on you, coerce or bully you into agreeing to have the treatment. That is both unprofessional and against the law.

Even if health professionals don’t agree with your decisions about your body, they must respect them.

If you do not agree to treatment, but health professionals still treat you, they may have broken the law.

The only time health professionals do not need your consent to treatment is when you are not able make a decision. This is very rare in law - for example because it is an emergency and you are unconscious. In this situation you must only give you treatment and care that you need to stay alive and safe.

Very rarely, you may not be able to give consent because you do not have the mental capacity to do so.

Before you decide about any care, test, procedure, intervention or operation the healthcare professionals must give you information about what will happen.

The information should tell you about any risks, and should tell you if there are other treatments you could have instead and the risks and benefits of those. It should tell you what could happen if you don’t have the treatment.

Your doctor / midwife should listen to you and find out what matters to you so that you have the information you need to make an informed decision. It is not enough just to give you a leaflet or a link to a website.

You should also have a personal discussion with your healthcare professional, and be able to ask questions to fully understand what is being offered.

You can then accept or decline the offer of the treatment or care.

It should be so simple shouldn’t it. The law is clear. But often it’s not, and you need to know this important information about your rights and what your care team are in law supposed to do.

For more info get booked o a good antenatal course ( I can help with that! Find more on my Hypnobirthing & Complete Antenatal Courses here) And head to the Birthright’s website too - https://www.birthrights.org.uk/

I hope that is helpful in providing some information o to help you make a decision that is right for you. Because that is what I am passionate about - choices.

Please get in touch if I can help in anyway

Susan x