<p>Professional midwives can improve the quality of maternal healthcare in India, experts said at an event organised by Aastrika Foundation in the city on Saturday.</p>.<p>While the health system suffers from inadequate staffing, infrastructure, below-par care and a weak referral system, normal pregnancies are being over-medicalised, with the inappropriate use of episiotomies, C-sections and inductions.</p>.<p>NFHS-5 (National Family Health Survey) said that there are 52.5% of C-section deliveries in Karnataka's private facilities, while in states like Telangana and West Bengal the number is over 80% against the global rate of 10-15%.</p>.<p>Dr Janhavi Nilekani, founder-chairman, Aastrika Foundation, said the solution is to have a cadre of midwives to facilitate easy births. "Professional midwives are not the same as traditional birth attendants. They are nurses who undertake a 1.5-year postgraduate NPM (Nurse Practitioners in Midwifery) course,” she said.</p>.<p>Dr Pallavi Chandra, the obstetrician at Fernandez Foundation in Hyderabad, said their hospital has been able to reduce interventions after inducting midwives about a decade ago.</p>.<p>IAS officer Dr Jayanti S Ravi explained how Gujarat rolled out the NPM course in 2009 and scaled it. "So far, 560 midwives have graduated, and a state-level resource pool of 52 master trainers have been created. Now, 14 facilities in Gujarat have midwife-led delivery units." </p>.<p>Economist Dr Nachiket Mor said obstetricians' discomfort with vaginal deliveries is the primary reason for C-section deliveries.</p>.<p>The number of C-sections can be regulated in different ways, said Dr Mor. "More number of births can be ensured in larger facilities with more staff. Clear protocols can be laid out for C-sections, and insurance companies can decline to cover procedures that aren't done as per protocol." </p>
<p>Professional midwives can improve the quality of maternal healthcare in India, experts said at an event organised by Aastrika Foundation in the city on Saturday.</p>.<p>While the health system suffers from inadequate staffing, infrastructure, below-par care and a weak referral system, normal pregnancies are being over-medicalised, with the inappropriate use of episiotomies, C-sections and inductions.</p>.<p>NFHS-5 (National Family Health Survey) said that there are 52.5% of C-section deliveries in Karnataka's private facilities, while in states like Telangana and West Bengal the number is over 80% against the global rate of 10-15%.</p>.<p>Dr Janhavi Nilekani, founder-chairman, Aastrika Foundation, said the solution is to have a cadre of midwives to facilitate easy births. "Professional midwives are not the same as traditional birth attendants. They are nurses who undertake a 1.5-year postgraduate NPM (Nurse Practitioners in Midwifery) course,” she said.</p>.<p>Dr Pallavi Chandra, the obstetrician at Fernandez Foundation in Hyderabad, said their hospital has been able to reduce interventions after inducting midwives about a decade ago.</p>.<p>IAS officer Dr Jayanti S Ravi explained how Gujarat rolled out the NPM course in 2009 and scaled it. "So far, 560 midwives have graduated, and a state-level resource pool of 52 master trainers have been created. Now, 14 facilities in Gujarat have midwife-led delivery units." </p>.<p>Economist Dr Nachiket Mor said obstetricians' discomfort with vaginal deliveries is the primary reason for C-section deliveries.</p>.<p>The number of C-sections can be regulated in different ways, said Dr Mor. "More number of births can be ensured in larger facilities with more staff. Clear protocols can be laid out for C-sections, and insurance companies can decline to cover procedures that aren't done as per protocol." </p>