A Global Communication Campaign by Devdiscourse
in collaboration with
Department of Social Work, Bhagat Phool Singh Mahila Vishwavidyalaya, India
I hereby resolve to request the gynecologist and other health professionals to register me as ‘To Be Mother’ or any other parallel term but not as a patient. I also resolve to dutifully learn and willfully practice various modes of healthy and happy lifestyle during my pregnancy without any pressure of any kind.
Devdiscourse is of the very strong opinion that like many other problems in the 21st century, negative communication is the root cause of this tragedy. We also firmly believe that the sufferings of the ‘To Be Mothers’ could be minimized and happiness increased in their lives through positive discourse and sensitization of various stakeholders associated with maternal healthcare.
Partnerships with various stakeholders are rightly considered crucial for a communication campaign of the global level. We solicit the partnerships from various national and international institutions, public offices and civil service organizations (CSOs) working in the areas of health, education and SDG 5 (Gender Equality).
The partnership is open for healthcare institutions (hospitals, maternity healthcare centres, and related public offices) throughout the globe.
Those willing to join will be required to support the campaign by signing the pledge and gradually stop using the term ‘patient’ for expectant mothers but instead use ‘To Be Mother’. They will also be required to ensure respectful, dignified and pleasant ambience for ‘To Be Mothers’. As the choice of the term ‘To Be Mother’ is optional, the healthcare institutions may use any other parallel term in the national or local language. After joining the campaign, the health partners may organize awareness events at their level.
Educational institutions (universities, colleges and related public offices) throughout the world are also invited for partnership. The educational intuitions are simply required to support the campaign by signing the pledge. They can also organize awareness events at their level.
Public offices and CSOs working for SDG 5 (Gender Equality) are also welcomed for partnership in the campaign. They are simply required to support the campaign by signing the pledge and organize awareness events at their level.
Besides being part of a noble cause which is associated with each and every human being on the globe, the partnership with the campaign will go a long way in the brand building and image management of corporate partners. In addition to displaying the logo of corporate partners on the dedicated campaign page, we will also cover news, articles, and selected interviews (textual and video). The logo of the corporate partners will be prominently displayed in all the publicity material of the campaign and special mentions are made wherever required/agreed upon.
The international organizations and affiliating agencies of the United Nations working in the field of health, education and SDG 5 are also welcomed to sign the pledge as support for the campaign.
The content created by Devdiscoruse team and contributed by campaign partners, supporters and volunteers will be disseminated in the form of news, blogs, articles, analyses, researches, videos, cartoons, etc.
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Positive thinking, positive ambience and positive communication can act as a boon for the maternal health and holistic development of the fetus. Sign up and become a part of the army of volunteers that aim to make sure that motherhood remains a positive experience, right from the hospital.
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In addition to the above three modes of catalysing objective discourse, the Devdiscourse will also run Live Discourse. Here, the participants could contribute by posting textual and audio-visual content. The Live Discourse will be open for all the partners, supporters, and volunteers.
A. ‘Mother, Not Patient!’ is a global communication campaign being run by Devdiscourse (Discourse on Development), a global media platform which is primarily covers news and views from the perspective of happenings in developmental landscape. The campaign envisions sensitization of various stakeholders associated with maternal healthcare through positive communication aimed at minimizing sufferings of 'To Be Mothers' and increase happiness in their lives. The campaign was launched in collaboration with Department of Social Work, Bhagat Phool Singh Mahila Vishwavidyalaya (BPSMV), a premier women university in India on October 15, 2019.
A. There are various researches throughout the world to suggest that positive thinking, positive ambience and positive communication act as a boon for the maternal health and holistic development of the fetus while negative thinking and tension cause adverse effects. In maternal healthcare institutions of most of the countries, the expectant mothers are registered as patient.
Addressing a 'To Be Mother' as a 'patient' and above all treating her like a 'patient' every time she visits the maternity healthcare center not only adversely affects her socio-psychological behavior but shrinks her personality from a jubilant 'To Be Mother' to merely a 'patient'. In the course of time, the relatives also start her treating like a patient and after some time she herself starts behaving as a patient. This socio-psychological pressure forces her to surrender in the hands of greedy healthcare professionals who trap her in the web of profiteering. The increasing number of stressed and depressed expectant mothers is also a reason behind alarmingly increasing cesarean deliveries which has many short term as well as long term health hazards. Thus making the women as permanent patients. The campaign aims to hit at the root cause of the problem by eliminating adverse effects of the negativity and increasing the proportion of positivity in the lives of expectant mothers.
A. As pregnancy is not a disease or ailment but the most beautiful stage in the life of woman when she carries a new life/lives inside her body, we urge the health professionals to discontinue the term patient for pregnant women. There is no mandate for any particular term. Presently, we are using two terms – ‘Expectant Mother’ and ‘To Be Mother’ for a pregnant woman. The health professionals are free to use any of these two terms in English or their parallels in regional languages. This would be a small step towards ensuring socio-psychological well-being of pregnant women and increasing happiness in their lives.
A. Yes. The campaign is associated with SDG 3.7 (By 2030, ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health-care services, including for family planning, information and education, and the integration of reproductive health into national strategies and programmes) and SDG 5.6 (Ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights as agreed in accordance with the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development, and the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcome documents of their review conferences).
This is also in conformity to the definition of reproductive health by World Health Organization (WHO) which says, “Reproductive health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity, in all matters relating to the reproductive system and to its functions and processes. Reproductive health implies that people are able to have a satisfying and safe sex life and that they have the capability to reproduce and the freedom to decide if, when and how often to do so”.
A. This campaign is not targeted against any profession but focused on sensitization of various stakeholders through positive communication. We don't believe in coercive tools like legal provisions but have full confidence in good faith seated in the innermost sense of every soul on this planet. We strive to ignite the good faith, globally.
A. It’s very simple. You can join the campaign just by signing the pledge. We also have an interesting program running for volunteers, healthcare professionals and public health professionals.
A. Yes. Partnerships with various stakeholders are rightly considered crucial for a communication campaign of the global standard. The partnership is open for health partners, education partners, SDG partners, Corporate Partners and International Organizations.
A. The campaign partnership has been envisioned on the principle of ‘Let’s Grow Together’. The campaign partners will be benefitted in the following ways:
A. In addition to the above mentioned benefits, the corporate partners can sponsor awareness material on which their logo, name and punchline etc. will be properly displayed to provide their brand robust visibility. Besides, they can sponsor the content such as researched stories, blogs and videos etc. where their logo, name, links and punchline etc. will be displayed as sponsor.
A. This will be an online campaign as well as generation and dissemination of offline awareness materials. The online activities will be run at Devdiscourse.com and its social media handles. Besides, some awareness building events such as talks and panel discussions may also be organized in the future depending on the availability of sponsorship.