Twenty percent of women reported experiencing mistreatment during pregnancy and delivery care, a new CDC report found.
The CDC analyzed data from the Porter Novelli View Moms survey, which had 2,402 participants report on overall satisfaction with the maternity care they received. The survey was given between April 24-30.
Here are five key findings:
- Reported mistreatment during maternity care was highest among Black (30 percent), Hispanic (29 percent) and multiracial (27 percent) women.
- Women with no insurance or public insurance reported at least 10 percentage points more mistreatment compared to women with private insurance.
- The most common incidents of mistreatment reported were receiving no response to requests for help, being shouted at, not having their physical privacy protected, and made to accept unwanted treatment or being threatened with withholding treatment.
- Discrimination based on age, weight and income varied by race, but about 29 percent of women reported experiencing it during maternity care.
- Forty-five percent of women reported holding back questions or concerns for fear of being told what they were experiencing was normal, being embarrassed to talk about it, feeling their healthcare provider would think they were difficult, thinking their healthcare provider seemed rushed, or not feeling confident.
Quality maternity care can be one way to reduce pregnancy-related deaths. The report offered three things healthcare systems and professionals can do to improve quality care:
- Systems can encourage a culture of respectful maternity care, hire and keep a diverse workforce, and train all staff on unconscious bias and stigma.
- Systems can promote quality improvement actions with a focus of increasing respect in maternity care.
- Providers can take steps to ensure all patients feel respected, understood and valued.