Comparison of Public Midwives' Practices During the Preparation of Labor and Birth with Practices Stated in Modern and Ancient Medicine Resources

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to determine the practices of traditional midwives living in Sivas, Agri and Erzurum regarding the birth and to compare them with public medicine and scientific approaches. This study will be useful to record information about the conventional birth assistance that is maintained in some of our regions, to form a source for health professionals working in the rural areas and especially to increase the quality of service provided by midwives regarding the birth assistance. A questionnaire, including questions related to socio-demographic features and birth, was used, to collect data during interviews made with midwives. The information obtained from the participants were analyzed as; a) the methods on starting of the birth, deciding on the birth position of the infant and decreasing the pain, b) methods applied and materials used during the birth, c) methods applied at the end of birth. It was determined that all of the midwives, who relatively had low income and no education, had learned the practices of midwifery from their mothers. Practices of birth assistance offered by midwives are included in the delivery folklore and historical medicine resources in Sivas, Agri, Erzurum and some other cities of Turkey and some of the methods they use are involved in today's practices. In this context, considering that midwives get independent from certain standards using the knowledge obtained from their mothers, have no anxiety about financial gain and are not against modern midwifery; it is suitable to assess the participants within the context of public midwifery. While the practices of midwives show parallelism with today's practices, they also have some practices that are harmful for maternal and infant health.