In Bulgaria, we have been going around in circles too often and on too many issues for too many years. The modern standard for obstetric care is that it be humane and that the woman has a positive experience.
This was said in an interview with the Bulgarian National Radio Nadezhda Tsekulova, a journalist and human rights activist.
"The conversation has degenerated before it even begins. There must be hysteria, scandal and something political for there to be a conversation at all," she said after the case of a woman in labor, who complained of verbal abuse and unethical treatment at the Maternity Home, was made public.
Childbirth cannot be divided into a medical and non-medical side, Tsekulova commented on the program "Predi visi".
The way in which the birth will proceed is categorically related to the emotional state of the woman. This is not a claim, but a proven biological process. Stress causes medical problems during childbirth, she emphasized.
In Bulgaria, the understanding that a woman should be calm during childbirth is neither a standard nor a conversation, she believes.
The system is highly medicalized. It pays attention to medications and medical procedures. It does not pay attention to the emotional state of both the doctors and the patients, Nadezhda Tsekulova also pointed out.
The woman may turn out to be unprepared, to do things that endanger the course of labor, but that is precisely why the team should be prepared and not be "burned out" in order to return the labor to its positive course, the journalist pointed out and added that in our country there is no practice of allowing a trusted person to the woman in labor until the birth, who gives her security and can be a mediator in this environment.
Change can come from obstetric activity and the signing of an obstetric standard for childbirth, Tsekulova expressed her position, reminding that this topic has been on the agenda for years.