Care of Women Who Lost Babies – Support in Miscarriage and Stillbirth

Opieka nad pacjentkami, które poroniły lub urodziły martwe dziecko wymaga doświadczenia, wiedzy i umiejętności komunikowania się z nimi. Pracownikom szpitali należy więc zapewnić odpowiednie szkolenia1. Przeprowadzona przez Najwyższą Izbę Kontroli (NIK) kontrola ujawniła, że szpitale ograniczały się najczęściej do udzielenia niezbędnej pomocy medycznej, natomiast nie zapewniały kobietom szerszego wsparcia przewidzianego przepisami prawa. Zastrzeżenia budził też sposób postępowania z ciałami dzieci.In the world, according to the UNICEF report, every 16 seconds a stillbirth takes place, and in 2019 in 39 high-revenue countries the number of stillbirths exceeded the numer of new-born babies’ deaths, while in 15 countries – the number of stillbirths exceeded the number of infants’ deaths. This may mean that in developed countries regular full-term pregnancies and giving birth to a healthy baby are a bigger problem than infant deaths. It is estimated that in 2019 in Poland over 39,000 women had a miscarriage and over 1,500 women experienced stillbirth. It is important to provide such women with appropriate care. It should not be limited to “eliminating” physical aspects of a miscarriage, stillbirth or delivery of a sick, or incapable of living new-borns. It should also support the psyche of women, so that this traumatic experience to the least extent possible affects their present and future lives. However, the audit conducted by the Supreme Audit Office revealed numerous deficiencies of the health protection system. The basic problem is that the care of such women is reduced to necessary medical assistance, it does not, however, ensure broader support that is guaranteed by the binding legal regulations