Before modern medicine, childbirth was often dangerous. It was not unusual for women to die during labor or shortly after the birth of a child. With today’s medical advances, it is not as common, but it does happen more often than it should. Psychology Today explains that death due to childbirth is higher in the United States than in other developed nations.
Sometimes, a death occurs due to something very rare and unpreventable. There is some belief that an increase in C-sections, women having babies at an older age and obesity also factor into maternal deaths. In most cases, though, if a doctor can catch a situation early enough, he or she can save the mother’s life.
A lack of healthcare may also be to blame. Mothers who do not receive adequate prenatal care may be more at risk of death during childbirth.
It is preventable
However, many times, it happens because doctors pay more attention to issues with the baby rather than the mother. Medical professionals may not even have the training necessary to recognize serious complications in mothers. Many doctors do not provide much care for mothers after the baby is born. They may check in once and assume that everything is okay.
Experts think this is because, during training, doctors do not learn about the risks of maternal mortality. Their training focuses on issues with babies, and they may not even understand the complications a mother can have. This means that they do not know what to look for and may only notice a problem once it is severe or the mother speaks up about symptoms.
The bottom line is that doctors need to be more attentive to mothers after childbirth. They need to learn how to look for common signs of complications and take action quickly if they spot them. Doing this could help to save many families from experiencing a loss when they should be celebrating a new life.
