Making Better Births a reality for women with multiple disadvantages
Revolving Doors Agency and Birth Companions have published a joint research report contributing to a better understanding of the experiences and needs of women facing multiple disadvantage during pregnancy and birth.
Women facing multiple disadvantage often have poor and sometimes traumatic experiences of maternity services, and significantly poorer outcomes. And yet the concept of multiple disadvantage and its implications for women during pregnancy, birth and early motherhood have been under-explored, making relevant health and maternity service improvements – of the kind outlined in NHS England’s vision for Better Births published in 2016 – very difficult to achieve for this group of women.
Birth Companions and Revolving Doors Agency have published new research to help address this. Making Better Births a reality for women with multiple disadvantages was led by a team of peer researchers (women with lived experience of multiple disadvantage who have trained as researchers) and co-designed with local commissioners. The report shares the voices of 34 women in north-east London – voices of a kind rarely heard by mainstream services – mapped against the priorities set out in the National Maternity Review.
Vicki Cardwell, Deputy Chief Executive of Revolving Doors Agency and co-author of the report, said:
Naomi Delap, Director of Birth Companions, said:
Speaking in support of the research and its peer-led model, Kate Brintworth, Head of Maternity Commissioning for East London added:
For more information on the report please contact Kirsty Kitchen at Birth Companions – kirsty@birthcompanions.org.uk / 07792779742
