“Dignity means different things for different people, and it’s difficult to deny the importance of the notion in understandings of human existence. So when we use dignity as a given of a quality to being human, we need to dig into what human means and who grants what a human with rights is.” Lisa Käll.
“Person-centred care is only reserved for some people entering healthcare systems, and not for others.” Sarah Hamed.
The question of human dignity is crucial in the fight for birthing rights for racially minoritised people in Sweden and the UK. Who is understood to be worthy of dignified care, what should dignified care look like and what is the responsibility of the health system? These troubling questions are discussed by our multidisciplinary panel from a philosophical, sociological and activist perspective in this powerful episode on Dignity in Maternity Care. In Part 1, speakers explore the concept of dignity and how it is used in research and practice. In Part 2, speakers review what their research shows about how black and brown people are treated in maternity care, what can be done to ensure that women and birthing people can maintain their rights, autonomy and a sense of dignity through supportive and caring communities. Speakers end with calls to learn from transformative justice and to build a collaborative movement to end mistreatment and harm in maternity care.
“We need solutions and pressure on government to think bigger and more radically about how to transform maternity care so that it becomes something that enables all women and birthing people to access life-affirming rights, respecting safe care.” Shanthi Gunesekera
For more information on topics raised in this episode:
Biographies
Lisa Käll, Professor in Gender Studies at Stockholm University. Lisa is head of the department for Ethnology, History of Religion and Gender studies at Stockholm University, leads the Nordic network for gender, body and health, and writes and edits publications within her research interests of feminist philosophy, especially phenomenology and philosophy of subjectivity, body/embodiment theory and many other areas.
Shanthi Gunesekera, Co-CEO at Birthrights UK, the leading authority on the rights of women and birthing people during pregnancy and birth in the UK. Shanthi and her job share partner Janaki previously led the Greater London Authority’s policy and programmes delivered under the Mayor of London’s Social Integration Strategy.
Sarah Hamed, Researcher in Medical Sociology at Kings College London and Head of Research and Evaluation at Black Thrive Global. Sarah focuses on migration and health inequalities, racism and racialisation in healthcare and is currently conducting a study on racism in maternity care in Sweden and the UK.
