Nursing and the humanization of pregnancy and delivery: a literature review about obstetric violence

Abstract

Motherhood is an important moment in a woman's life. It involves the family and the whole community, and these are very important in the whole process. In the care setting, childbirth is no longer considered a physiological process, thus taking the role of women and giving rise to obstetric violence. Aiming to improve this scenario, the humanization movement appears, stimulating several initiatives for changes and updating of obstetric practices. The objective of this study was to analyze publications referring to obstetric violence and its effects on women's health. This is a literature review, using the Virtual Health Library as a research source. It is concluded that the most common forms of obstetric violence are all those that steal the role of women, causing trauma, and that issues of gender, social class, race and education directly influence a greater occurrence of this type of violence. In addition to highlighting the lack of understanding of women on the subject, we highlight the importance of quality prenatal care. Nursing is highlighted as the main instrument of change in the obstetric scenario, identifying the need for a constant updating of the team and the insertion of the subject in question in the curricula.