Disrespect and abuse during childbirth in maternity hospitals in Piauí, Brazil: A cross-sectional study

To assess the prevalence and associated factors of disrespect and abuse during childbirth in Piauí, Brazil.

A cross-sectional study was performed with 698 postpartum women in 21 maternity hospitals in 14 municipalities between August 2018 and September 2019. Face-to-face interviews were performed at least 6 h after birth, with an assessment of disrespect and abuse during childbirth. Robust Poisson regression was used, with calculation of the adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs).

There was evidence that 19.8% of women experienced at least one type of disrespect and abuse during childbirth, with verbal abuse (12.6%), noncompliance with professional standards (11.6%), and health service restrictions being more common (8.3%). There was an association of disrespect and abuse during childbirth with women aged 10 to 19 years (aPR, 1.97; 95% CI, 1.58-2.44), absence of companions (aPR, 2.43; 95% CI, 1.85-2.89), cesarean sections after labor (aPR, 2.19; 95% CI, 1.64-3.59), public hospitals (aPR, 1.87; 95% CI, 1.42-2.85), and in the countryside (aPR, 2.29; 95% CI, 1.81-3.98).

There was a high prevalence of disrespect and abuse during childbirth in Piauí, Brazil, associated with structural conditions of the services, care practices, and characteristics of women.