The WHO Labour Care Guide advances evidence-based, respectful, and person-centered intrapartum care by strengthening health workers’ capacity for standardized monitoring and timely decision-making.

Aastrika Foundation’s work demonstrates how respectful maternity care can be embedded within midwifery-led care in India. Through training, capacity building, and partnerships, the initiative promotes evidence-based maternity care, strengthens provider competencies, and advances woman-centred childbirth practices.

This presentation examines Indonesia’s efforts to integrate respectful maternity care into health system reforms. It highlights persistent maternal health challenges, evidence of low RMC scores, and strategies promoting dignity, shared decision-making, and culturally responsive maternity services.

This qualitative study explores perceptions, barriers, and facilitators of birth companionship in public and private hospitals in Vietnam. It highlights challenges limiting adoption while identifying opportunities to strengthen a proven intervention that supports respectful maternity care and improved childbirth outcomes.

This compendium consolidates evidence, tools, and resources to support implementation of respectful maternal and newborn care. Designed for programme managers and practitioners, it provides foundational knowledge on mistreatment, respectful care, and practical approaches for improving service quality.

This cross-sectional study of 401 postpartum women examined the prevalence and determinants of disrespect and abuse during facility-based childbirth. Using a validated respectful maternity care framework, it identifies factors associated with women’s experiences across health facilities in India.

Conducted across 18 public hospitals in India, this mixed-method study found that birth companions can reduce disrespect and abuse during childbirth while improving women’s experiences. Institutional barriers, including overcrowding and privacy concerns, continue to limit implementation.

This case study from Government Medical College, Aurangabad, demonstrates how respectful maternity care can be institutionalized in a busy public hospital. Initiatives such as birth companions, alternate birthing positions, and staff sensitization highlight practical approaches to improving woman-centred care.

Fernandez Foundation’s in-house training model equips doctors and nurses with practical skills in respectful maternity care through scenario-based learning, reflection, and assessment. The initiative demonstrates how institutional ownership and structured training can improve communication, empathy, and care quality.

Mistreatment of women during childbirth in health facilities was cited as to play a key role in poor perinatal mental health in this paper. Read More...