Increasing commercialisation of pregnancy puts pressure on mums and midwives, suggests the Royal College of Midwives
Foetus parties, celebrities and the culture of the yummy mummy is putting pressure on pregnant women and increasing the strain on midwives, warns Professor Cathy Warwick, chief executive of the Royal College of Midwives. Cathy believes celebs like Coleen Rooney, who reportedly hired a 4D ultrasound scan machine for her friends and family to watch, increases expectations women have about childbirth. The effect of this pressure falls to the midwives to deal with, particularly if something goes wrong. There are now companies offering champagne celebration packages of foetus themed products for mums to give out to friends and family, at a cost of as much as £185. This detracts from the actual purpose of the scan, cathy explains. A scan’s primary function is to detect problems with the baby, yet companies appear to be cashing in, raising ethical questions. After so much hype, if something goes wrong with the pregnancy women can be left needing extended periods of counselling. Would you want your scan on fridge magnet? Let us know below…
