Petition for Improving Maternity Care Services in the Czech Republic

Birth is a normal, natural, and healthy process. 90% of women can experience birth without any complications or interventions, if appropriate conditions are provided.

Despite satisfactory statistics and efforts in improving the care during the recent years, there still are serious mistakes and misconceptions happening in the Czech Republic in the field of obstetrics. These can be summarized within the following points:

- Disobeying the valid legislation in terms of disrespect of rights of women who are giving birth, and disrespect of rights of both parents who are lawful guardians of the child after the birth.
- Disrespect towards the most recent knowledge introduced by science and research as summarized within the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International MotherBaby Childbirth Initiative, IMBCI, especially in terms of distortion of the process of normal birth and the important relationship between mother and child.
- Providing incomplete and misguided information.
- Discrimination of the profession of midwife despite the fact that by scientific research midwife’s care is considered most effective during the process of normal birth.
- Liquidating small maternity hospitals which usually offer a “domestic” type of care. These small hospitals are being closed down despite the fact that large hospitals are overfilled, their capacity cannot satisfy the current demand, and they do not conform to many women.

The current Czech obstetrics considers birth as a process of risk. The efforts to protect the physical health of mothers and the newly born ones often lead to disruption of otherwise normally developing birth processes by interventions which can lead to real complications as a consequence. Besides that, psychological and social needs of mothers and babies are not fully valued. This is happening despite the fact that there is lots of evidence proved by latest scientific research of the importance of the perinatal period during which health of the child is being framed as well as emotional and social behavior patterns are being formed. These are some of the reasons why there is a growing number of women who make the decision to give birth outside the hospitals or to give birth in an ambulant way. This is a situation which is not being taken into account by the official system of maternity care. As a result, birthing centres which are common in other countries, are being rejected by the official health care system.

We are convinced that its time now to introduce real institutional and system changes. We are therefore calling on those who are responsible for setting up the maternity care in the Czech Republic to start dealing with the situation immediately.

The first step towards changes must be a start up of a democratic discussion in which representatives of the Ministry of Healthcare, healthcare insurance bodies and companies, doctors, obstetrics specialists, neonatologists, pediatricians, midwives, nurses, doulas, and parents will take part.

The objective ought to be to secure care that will be safe, economically least demanding and at the same time individual. Such care should be fully covered by insurance for all pregnant women and women giving birth in the Czech Republic and should respect their rights to choose the place, the way, and the provider of care and services in pregnancy, at and after birth.

Therefore we ask for:
1.A guarantee to informed choice for pregnant women, women giving birth, and parents in accordance with the valid legislation;
2.Including midwives and parents to discussions about the future setting of the Czech maternity care;
3.Including representatives of midwives and parents into the advisory bodies of the Ministry of Healthcare;
4.Including representatives of midwives and parents into the official bodies who are entitled to give comments at the Ministry of Healthcare;
5.Making it possible for midwives to perform their jobs and carry out their profession fully and independently.

Those who support this call

This petition is being presented by the following organizations:
A centrum – Vědomá a aktivní příprava na mateřství (A-centrum - Conscious and Active Preparation for Motherhood)
Aperio - Společnost pro zdravé rodičovství (Aperio - Healthy Parenting Association)
Česká asociace dul (Czech Association of Doulas)
Hnutí za aktivní mateřství (Active Motherhood Movement)
Unipa - Unie porodních asistentek (Union of Midwives)

The Petition Committee:
Petra Sovová, Dlouhá 27, 110 00, Praha 1
MgA. Katarína Zatovičová, Na zámyšli 3, 150 00, Praha 5
Ivana Königsmarková, Londýnská 28, 120 00, Praha 2
Mgr. Lucie Ryntová, U dubu 12, 140 00, Praha 4
Any member of the Committee is entitled to act as a representative of the Committee when dealing with the state intuitions.

The Petition is supported by the following organizations.
Evropská kontaktní skupina
Gender Studies
Liga otevřených mužů
Porodní dům U čápa
Síť mateřských center
Nadace Naše dítě
Síť mateřských center
Rodičovský institut, o.s

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