Obstetric Violence Is Prevalent in Routine Maternity Care: A Cross-Sectional Study of Obstetric Violence and Its Associated Factors among Pregnant Women in Sri Lanka’s Colombo District

Dinusha Perera (), Muzrif Munas, Katarina Swahnberg, Kumudu Wijewardene, Jennifer J. Infanti () and on behalf of the ADVANCE Study Group
Additional contact information
Dinusha Perera: Family Health Bureau, Ministry of Health, Colombo 01000, Sri Lanka
Muzrif Munas: National Cancer Control Programme, Ministry of Health, Colombo 00500, Sri Lanka
Katarina Swahnberg: Department of Health and Caring Sciences, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Linnaeus University, SE-391 82 Kalmar, Sweden
Kumudu Wijewardene: Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Gangodawila, Nugegoda 10250, Sri Lanka
Jennifer J. Infanti: Department of Public Health and Nursing, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, NTNU-Norwegian University of Science and Technology, NO-7491 Trondheim, Norway
on behalf of the ADVANCE Study Group: Membership of the ADVANCE Study Group is provided in the Acknowledgments section.

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 16, 1-13

Abstract: The phenomenon of obstetric violence has been documented widely in maternity care settings worldwide, with scholars arguing that it is a persistent, common, but preventable impediment to attaining dignified health care. However, gaps remain in understanding local expressions of the phenomenon, associations with other types of violence against women, and implications for women’s trust and confidence in health providers and services. We focused on these issues in this cross-sectional study of 1314 women in Sri Lanka’s Colombo district. Specifically, in this study, we used Sinhalese and Tamil translations of the NorVold Abuse Questionnaire and the Abuse Assessment Screen to measure prevalence of women’s experiences with obstetric violence in maternity care and lifetime and pregnancy-specific domestic violence. Then, the results were interpreted by considering the women’s sociodemographic characteristics, such as age, ethnicity, and family income, to reveal previously undocumented associations between obstetric and domestic violence during pregnancy, as well as other factors associated with experiencing obstetric violence. We argue that obstetric violence is prevalent in government-sector (public) maternity care facilities in the Colombo district and is associated with young age, lower family income, non-majority ethnicity, and rural residency. Significantly, this study sheds light on a serious concern that has been underexamined, wherein women who report experiencing obstetric violence are also less likely to be asked by a health care provider about domestic violence experiences. Further research at the clinical level needs to focus on appropriate training and interventions to ensure women’s safety and cultivate relationships between patients and health care providers characterized by trust, confidence, and respect.

Keywords: obstetric violence; domestic violence; maternity care; Sri Lanka; prevalence study; vulnerable populations (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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