Annah Mathaila breaks down as she opens up about alleged ill-treatment and neglect from nurses at South Rand Hospital in Johannesburg. Mathaila claims she was mistreated at the hospital and her pregnant daughter was neglected by staff and ended up miscarrying. Picture: Gallo Images When Tasneem, not her real name opened her eyes, gradually regaining consciousness, she was abruptly told to get up.
But when she tried to stand, she saw blood everywhere – her back, hair and mattress were soaked. When she finally stood up, the blood had pooled across the cold, tiled floor. Although the description of her ordeal bears the hallmarks of harrowing stories of rape and femicide in South Africa, Tasneem wasn’t beaten by her partner or attacked by a stranger.
Still, what happened to Tasneem is gender-based violence (GBV), albeit in a lesser-known form, called obstetric violence. During labour at her local hospital, Tasneem was subjected to forced dilation and induction; her amniotic sac was broken without consent. The pain caused her to black out.
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In theatre, forceps were used to deliver her baby, injuring her newborn so severely that the little one needed surgery. Her story is not unique. While labour wards are stressful places and life-threatening obstetric events often necessitate urgent intervention, the rights and dignity of women in labour are frequently disregarded.
Unlike domestic violence or sexual assault – widely recognised as criminal or social harms – obstetric violence is often treated as a medical issue. Not a gendered violation. While we don’t yet have national prevalence data on obstetric violence in South Africa, a systemic review of 25 global studies over 10 years found the prevalence of obstetric violence to be 59%, with non-consensual medical care emerging as the most common violation.
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