For over a year, the Provincial Nursing Department of the Provincial Health Directorate has been leading the implementation of respectful maternal and neonatal care by those responsible for preparing pregnant women to arrive in optimal conditions at the time of delivery.

Las Tunas, Cuba.- Jhoannys Diéguez Peña, head of this department, explained to 26 that, with this care, they seek to ensure that not only the pregnant woman participates in the birth process.

"We want the family to be prepared too, the husband, the mother, or whoever she decides to accompany her at this time. We want to ensure that when the child is born, it also receives the proper care and that the mother is ready to receive it."

"We are implementing the program from primary health care to secondary care. It has involved training medical and nursing staff and everyone who directly cares for our pregnant women and newborns."

"This scheme is newly implemented, but it has yielded results because we see that women are already aware of respectful maternal and neonatal care, and the family is also getting involved."

"The first step is when the pregnant woman comes in for her pregnancy checkup. From that moment on, we begin to explain the stages of childbirth, how to prepare during pregnancy, what exercises to do to strengthen the body, and what the birth will be like, always involving the family."

These talks are held during all consultations, explained Diéguez Peña, and are also extended to the mothers' homes and, upon their arrival, to the hospitals where the births take place.