Anyone who has experienced a miscarriage, stillbirth or other pregnancy loss will understand the pain, distress and uncertainty that can follow.
Because these experiences are common, you might hope that the way we help people during and after the event would be uniformly good.
Unfortunately, this is not the case. Back in 2016, The Lancet noted that . There are also marked inequalities globally, because 98 per cent of stillbirths happen in low-income countries. Variations in facilities, access to services, and public awareness all make a difference to pregnancy and birth outcomes.
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The quality of training for healthcare workers is also patchy, with staff often struggling to stay up to date with the latest evidence, or to provide effective care in overstretched services. Where training is provided, it tends to focus primarily on physical 鈥� preventing accidents and dealing with pregnancy or birth problems 鈥� rather than emotional needs.
Patchy records
Providing compassionate care also requires we do better at recording stillbirths. In September, The Lancet that the prevalence of stillbirth is currently underestimated by a third.
The World Health Organization uses an international cut-off point of fetal loss after 28 weeks for recording stillbirth. Researchers and practitioners are asking for stillbirths to be recognised and recorded from 22 weeks, allowing for more investigations into its potential causes. Parents simply want better opportunities to recognise their losses and remember their babies.
All of this means that healthcare workers cannot currently provide the care they would like to people who have suffered loss 鈥� which can negatively affect their well-being.
Within the UK, the 聽 is seeking to change things and 鈥渆nsure that all bereaved parents are offered equal, high quality, individualised, safe and sensitive care in any experience of pregnancy or baby loss鈥�.
This is a welcome development in my view, because the poor care I received following one of my miscarriages turned what was an upsetting event into a far bigger trauma that in turn affected my future pregnancies, losses and mental health.
Let鈥檚 talk about it
Speaking about the loss of a pregnancy should not be a taboo, but it remains one.
Many charities are now pushing for greater awareness and conversations to break the silence over pregnancy loss, with events such as , taking place this week. All of this is admirable, but these conversations cannot just be led by those directly affected by loss. They need to be heeded and joined by those offering care and undertaking research.
Without joined-up studies, care and training, and referrals to sources of support, pregnancy loss will continue to be a difficult path that many of us should not have to walk alone.
Help and support for those affected by loss can be found here:
