Pregnancy, Parenthood & Playtime

A lot of women are not familiar with their legal rights for care and popular procedures and tests that most pregnant women are advised to undergo.
Recently I have been meeting a lot of women that were not or are not familiar with their rights as a patient, especially when they do go into the hospital to give birth to their children. Hospital policies are not laws, they are rules that hospitals make, and procedures suggested by organizations like ACOG to make the jobs of hospital staff easier. But these same rules and policies have turned hospital births into a one size fits all type birth. I like to think of it as an assembly line. So here are a couple tips taken from the ICAN White Paper for Legal Rights of Pregnant women.

When a woman becomes pregnant, whether the pregnancy is planned, or not, she does not lose any of her constitutional rights. She is still a full citizen that is entitled to every right she was entitled to before she became pregnant.

• The consent of a competent woman’s husband is never required for her treatment. No matter what anyone tells you, the mother is always the authority in her care unless she is unable to make informed decisions about her care.
• Women have a right to have another woman present during a physical examination. Whether this be a sister, doula, mother or partner.
• Women can refuse to be examined to treated by anyone. If you do not like a certain nurse, doctor, or provider, you do not have to be seen by them simply because they maybe the “on call” at the hospital for the evening or there are “no other nurses” available at that time.
• Women have the right to have the father of the child, or any other advocate, present during childbirth and delivery. Whether this be a doula, or family member.
• Pregnant women have the right to refuse any medical treatment or drug including a cesarean section, episiotomy, anesthesia, induction drugs, or pain medication. Remember, all medical choices do need your consent.
• A woman has a right to change her mind about any decision made before or during labor or child birth. Sometimes things do not go as planned, or as we would have liked so having back up ideas, or plans or simply changing your mind is alright.
• A woman and her newborn have a right to remain in the hospital for 48 hours after a vaginal birth, and 96 hours after a cesarean section, however your goal should be to to leave the hospital as soon as safely possible to be able to get back into the comfort of her own home.

Today, people who understand these rights as patients are more likely to successfully negotiate the health care system, use health insurance and managed care plans, and work with physicians and other health care professionals. Most important, a just health care system requires respect for the rights of patients. (Taken from the Patient Rights Program, Health Law Department of the Boston University School of Public Health)

These are not tools to argue and fight with hospital staff, or your doctor. But if you do not feel comfortable with your medical care provider, or if they do not respect your choices or rights, you should immediately seek a different provider. I know it is very scary to switch health care providers especially in the middle of or at the end of a pregnancy, but if you do not have a good relationship, or trust, that can and most likely will impact your birth experience.