Why Ma Couldn't Choose Her Childbirth Method?

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A pregnant woman and her unborn child died after she jumped from the fifth floor of a hospital in Yulin, Northwest China's Shaanxi Province during childbirth Thursday, with the hospital and family clashing over what led to her death. 

The clash between a hospital in Yulin, Northwest China's Shaanxi Province and the family of Ma Rongrong, intensified on Wednesday, triggering a new round of debate with many netizens questioning why Ma herself had no right to decide on her childbirth options. 

Ma, a 26-year-old pregnant woman, and her unborn child died after she jumped from the fifth floor of the First Hospital of Yulin on August 31 due to the unbearable pain she was experiencing during labor, with the hospital and family clashing over what led to her death.

The hospital claimed that both Ma and the hospital had suggested Ma should have a C-section, but her family refused. 

China used to have one of the highest rates of C-sections in the world with the World Health Organization (WHO) reporting in 2010 that more than 40 percent of Chinese babies were delivered by C-section. 

The WHO has recommended that the C-section rate should be 10-15 percent. Since then, China has been trying to avoid medically unnecessary C-sections. In major public hospitals, C-sections won't be recommended unless natural labor may pose risks and such C-sections won't be performed unless the family agrees by signing consent forms.   

The hospital explained that Ma signed an authorization letter before giving birth to authorize her husband to decide on the way of precreation. 

The exchange of blame triggered heated online discussion, with many netizens calling for Chinese women to have more say on their childbirth options. 

"China has no law to stipulate that on what conditions an authorization letter should be signed in medical practice, and China's law also fails to specify who should be first informed for diagnosis and operation," said Zhou Zijun, a professor with the School of Public Health of Peking University. 

The legal deficiency led some hospitals to require family members to sign the consent forms. Normally, the family of the patients could sign the consent form for operation when patients are in coma, severe conditions or incapable of civil conduct, Zhou said. 

But many foreign countries clearly state that patients should be first informed of their illness or operations, and there are strict procedures for family members to sign the consent, he added. The doctor in-charge of the case has been temporarily suspended from his position and is being investigated by local police.

Source: globaltimes

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