Research; obstetric violence against indigenous women

Research; obstetric violence against indigenous women

Translated by Jonath Lott 

According to the study “Situación de la Violencia Obstétrica en Mujeres Indígenas Guatemaltecas” (The Situation of Obstetric Violence Against Indigenous Guatemalan Women), obstetric violence is defined as dehumanizing treatment, medication abuse, and the pathologization of natural processes by health personnel, resulting in women’s loss of autonomy and decision-making power over their bodies and sexuality.

This type of violence is particularly harmful because it is perpetrated at times of great vulnerability for women and has a significant impact on their quality of life.

The abuses suffered by indigenous women in public health services range from medical abuse and lack of informed consent during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period, to practices that border on cruelty, such as suffering from thirst, hunger, and cold, according to the study. For indigenous communities, the linguistic, cultural, and social barriers established by the system complicate access to dignified care.

As part of the project “Mayan women politically confronting obstetric violence as a public health problem in Guatemala,” the organizations Asociación de Servicios Comunitarios de Salud (ASECSA) and Asociación Política de Mujeres Mayas (MOLOJ) conducted this research on the subject.

According to the research, this project seeks to highlight and transform this problem by promoting dignified, culturally relevant care based on the principles of Good Living.

The research, led by Verónica Sajbin, Silvia Solorzano, and Teresa Laines, was carried out in the public health services of the departments of Quiché and Chimaltenango, revealing the contempt for ancestral medicine. In particular, midwives, whose role is crucial in rural areas, are targeted.

In the department of Chimaltenango, interviews were conducted at three levels of health care: a health post, a permanent care center (CAP), and the National Hospital of Chimaltenango, as well as the Type I Hospital in Tecpán. In addition, a virtual interview was conducted with the Indigenous Peoples and Intercultural Care Unit (UNAPII) of the Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance (MSPAS). In Santa Cruz del Quiché, the director of the Santa Elena National Hospital was interviewed.

The qualitative component of the research included a sample of 21 semi-structured interviews with users in Chimaltenango and Quiché, seven of them from the K’iche’ community and 14 from the Kaqchiquel community; a focus group with midwives in each department (14 in total, 2 of them Ladino/Mestizo and the rest from the Maya people) and two in-depth interviews conducted in Chimaltenango.

Fourteen interviews were conducted with medical and nursing staff at institutions belonging to the Ministry of Public Health and Social Protection (MSPAS). A total of 51 people participated, according to data from the document.

Obstetric violence in public services was identified and documented, particularly discriminatory practices against indigenous women.

Improving Care

The aim of this research is to create strategies that promote respectful care for the identity and diversity of users; propose indicators to measure, monitor, and prevent obstetric violence against indigenous women; and analyze the barriers women face in reporting it.

During the presentation of the results, Sajbin explained that “the research focused on two departments with the largest indigenous communities, where there is evidence of the impact on women’s lives, because they feel disoriented and cannot understand why they are being treated this way. All of this has an impact on their recovery and adaptation to motherhood, because they have had an unpleasant experience with their bodies.”

She stated that they identified several types of harm, but above all racism and discrimination for not using the local languages. Women do not understand the processes and situations they are experiencing at that moment and what may happen or become complicated during childbirth.

Another type of mistreatment is that no information is provided about the newborn’s condition, causing distress. “They take the babies away and the women don’t know what happened.” That is also a form of violence, she said.

Sajbin said they also documented cases of physical violence, such as “slapping” to calm the babies down and stop them from crying. As for psychological violence, she points out that it occurs when they are spoken to only in Spanish and, because they do not understand, they are treated as “stupid” for not grasping the explanation.

Sajbin expressed concern about the results of sexual violence that some victims reported during care at health centers. Some said they suffered this type of abuse from doctors, students, or nurses. Among the accounts are “I didn’t like how he touched me,” “I didn’t feel comfortable with the way he looked at me,” “I was exposed and “I wasn’t comfortable when they came to look at me,” she said.