The Role of the Traditional Birth Attendant in Rural Jamaica
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Authors
Blumstein, Lara
Issue Date
1996
Type
Thesis
Language
en_US
Keywords
Alternative Title
Abstract
According to the World Health Organization, a Traditional Birth
Attendant is an individual"who assists the mother at childbirth and who
initially acquired her skills in delivering babies by herself or by working with
other traditional birth attendants"(Feyi-Wabaso, p.676). As a product of a
society which values the biomedical approach to the human body, 1 have a
difficult time understanding why a woman would choose a birth attendant
with no formal medical training. In the United States, one deals with normal
biological acts, such as giving birth, with full preparation for the worst. Our
medical approach is focused upon the pathological. Yet, while childbirth is a
biological act, the practices and customs surrounding childbirth are a
reflection of the culture in which the birth takes place. To understand why a
woman might choose to be attended by a traditional birth attendant during
birth, one would have to examine the culture in which the traditional birth
attendant is the provider of health care to new mothers and infants, chosen
over the biomedical doctor.
In order to explore the perceptions regarding traditional birth
attendants in a developing countries, I traveled to central Jamaica. Jamaica is
a Caribbean island nation with a relatively well developed primary health
care system in comparison with other developing countries. Yet, in the
interior of the island, many women are still delivered with traditional birth
attendants, who are called nanas. Much of the interior is rather isolated and
rural. Those in the interior are generally farmers who still hold on to their
traditional beliefs, as they are largely unaffected by increased modernization.
While care is offered by the primary health care system, though it is far less
available than in urban areas, women often choose the traditional method of
delivery over that offered by trained health care workers.
With the help of the Jamaican Ministry of Health, I was able to locate a
traditional birth attendant with whom I could live with and study. I spent
seven weeks with Miss Selma, in the district of Hedding. There I
accompanied heron one birth, and observed her place in rural Jamaican
society. I interviewed a number of women who had been attended by Miss
Selma, as well as with a trained domiciliary midwife or in a hospital.
Through these interviews, as well observations, I began to have a sense of
why many women choose to the traditional method of delivery over medical
practices which are often perceived to be safer.
Description
58 p.
Citation
Publisher
Kalamazoo, Mich. : Kalamazoo College.
License
U.S. copyright laws protect this material. Commercial use or distribution of this material is not permitted without prior written permission of the copyright holder. All rights reserved.