Cultural aspects of pregnancy and childbirth

Question 1

What is culture

Answer 1

‘Culture’ is a set of guidelines that individuals inherit and learn as members of a particular group. It ranges over knowledge, belief, customs, ideas, concepts, rules and meanings that underlie and are expressed in the way that humans live.

Question 2

What 6 factors determine the WHO MDG5 for maternal health

Answer 2

Maternal mortality ratio, porportion of births attended by a skilled health personnel, contraceptive prevalence rate, adolescent birth rate, anteneatal care coverage, and unmet needs for family planning

Question 3

What is a skilled attendant in birth

Answer 3

A skilled attendant is an accredited health professional – such as a midwife, doctor or nurse – who has been educated and trained to proficiency in the skills needed to manage normal (uncomplicated) pregnancies, childbirth, and the immediate postnatal period, and in the identification, management and referral of complications in women and newborns

This does nor include traditional birth attendants who are not formally trained