Maternal health services in India
Being pregnant is wonderful. Pregnancy is not risk-free, though. And the journey of pregnancy until childbirth is often beset with barriers. Many of these barriers to maternal health services in India are external, from society's attitudes towards pregnant women and their rights in the workplace to a lack of access to healthcare.
Despite the progress that has been made, the journey of pregnancy until childbirth is still difficult and challenging for many women around the world. Pregnant women frequently lack access to antenatal care and the treatments required for a safe and healthy delivery because low-resource countries tend to have weak health systems.
The National Health Mission, Government of India reports,
Only 50% of pregnant women have a check-up in the first trimester.
Only 50% of women have four antenatal checkups during pregnancy.
Only 20% of pregnant women have had full antenatal care as recommended by the department of health.
38.7% to 78.9%, a significant increase in institutional births in the last 10 years.
Mental health and well-being during pregnancy
Even though medical care for pregnant women is crucial, it is not enough or comprehensive. Pregnant women, like everybody else, can require mental health care. However, the assistance they may receive is not tailored to the issues they face during pregnancy, resulting in isolation, helplessness, and hopelessness.
Often one hears concerns about melancholy, recalling unpleasant memories from the past, panic attacks, compulsive rumination, and a great fear of childbirth.
Studies show that 74% of mothers have experienced pregnancy specific anxiety (British Medical Journal) and 25% of pregnant women suffer from prenatal depression, mostly between 18-32 weeks of pregnancy (The Lancet). Women can be unaware of what to expect, and usually are not told about danger signs to look out for or precautions to take.
Why there are gaps in mental health and well-being, and what can be done
There are several key issues related to mental health and well-being during pregnancy in India.
- In India, there is a great deal of stigma associated with mental health problems, which may discourage pregnant women from getting the mental health care they need.
- There is poor access to mental health services in India, either because they are not available in their area or because they are too expensive.
- There is a poor understanding of mental health and women often cannot recognize the signs and symptoms of common mental health conditions.
- Pregnant women may not have adequate support from their family and community, which can contribute to feelings of isolation and stress.
- Pregnancy can be a time of financial insecurity for many women in India, which can contribute to stress and anxiety.
- Pregnant women may feel pressure to meet certain social and cultural expectations, which can also contribute to stress and mental health issues.
- Domestic violence is a serious issue in India, and pregnant women may be at increased risk of experiencing abuse. This can have a negative impact on their mental health and well-being.
- Most women have poor nutrition during pregnancy, which can have negative impacts on both the mother's and the baby's physical and mental health.
A woman's health and wellbeing affects her unborn baby too. In fact, most of the issues that newborns are affected by can be prevented by adopting often simple measures during pregnancy. Furthermore, there is significant disparity in maternal health care utilisation. Rural women and those who are challenged with literacy are disproportionately affected. In rural India, self care, awareness of changes in pregnancy and the need to attend to one's mental health and wellbeing during pregnancy remains an enigma. A study published in World Health and Population demonstrates how raising awareness and supporting women to take measures for their health and wellbeing during pregnancy, neonatal morbidity and mortality can be reduced.
"Pregnant women or mothers with mental health problems are less likely to care adequately for their personal needs, to seek and receive antenatal or postnatal care, or adhere to prescribed health regimens."
"If you want to reduce maternal mortality, you must focus on the mental health of mothers"- Sriram Haridass, India representative of the United Nations Population Fund
The COVID-19 epidemic and pregnancy in India
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused difficulty and stressful time for many pregnant women and has taken a toll on women's health and wellbeing during pregnancy.
"The mental health issues and problems faced by women in rural India are even more serious. Owing to the lockdown and enforcement of social distancing norms, it was not possible for local health workers to reach every woman. In rural areas, most of the time, antenatal care services are provided in groups (usually 10 to 20 pregnant women at a facility). Many pregnant and lactating mothers are left without medical care." (S.Jungari)
It is important that you take care of yourself and use support services if you have any concerns about your health or your baby’s health (Learn how Kushal has responded to the COVID -19 epidemic). There is a lot of guidance and information resources to help you cope with the epidemic when pregnant. Take a look at the Maternal Mental Health Alliance site.
We offer pregnancy mental health and wellbeing services in rural and urban India. Mental health and wellbeing workshops are carried out in remote communities. Our online pregnancy health and wellbeing guide is widely used by women in these communities to get wholistic information on how to stay physically and mentally healthy during pregnancy.
