AWHONN Recommends Reducing Preventable Harm to Moms and Babies By Eliminating Overuse of Labor Induction
- Research Shows that Labor Induction, Used in 1-in-4 U.S. Births, Can Create a 'Cascade of Significant Medical Issues' For Mothers & Babies, While Costlier to Patients and Insurance Providers -
- Waiting for Labor to Start on Its Own Is Strongly Recommended -
WASHINGTON, Sept. 23, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN) is calling upon healthcare providers and pregnant women to avoid induction of labor at any time during pregnancy unless it is medically necessary.
Approximately one-in-four U.S. births are induced, a number that has more than doubled since 1990. While there are limited data to distinguish how many of these inductions are for medical and non-medical reasons, there is no data to suggest that the significant increase in the induction rate is attributable to a similar rise in medical problems during pregnancy.
According to a position statement to be published in the September/October issue in AWHONN's Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic, & Neonatal Nursing (JOGNN), researchers have demonstrated that inducing labor without a medical reason increases the risks for complications for both mother and baby, and should not be done except when medically necessary, and especially not for convenience.
Nurses are on the frontlines of healthcare and see first-hand the harmful effects for moms and babies of using medications to help start or speed labor when there is no medical reason to do so. Furthermore, most people are unaware that giving such medication without a reason causes significant unnecessary immediate and long-term risks for a mother and baby.
"The medication commonly used to induce labor, oxytocin, is a high-alert medication and pregnant women and their fetuses are a vulnerable population," said AWHONN's Chief Executive Officer Lynn Erdman, MN, RN, FAAN. "Until we better understand the implications of administering artificial hormones to women and fetuses, nurses' advice is to limit induction and allow labor to begin on its own when all is healthy." High-alert medications are those that carry an increased risk of causing significant harm, when used in error, compared with other medications.
For more details on the position statement and specific risks of labor induction, please visit: www.awhonn.org.
SOURCE Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN)
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