Female circumcision may be a foreign concept to those of us born in the United States, however in many countries throughout Africa, female circumcision is considered a right of passage. A large percentage of young girls are circumcised every year. My purpose in writing this blog post is not to pass judgment on rituals of which I have no experience and little knowledge, but to share some insight into this practice from a midwifery and birth worker prospective.
I just watched a video showing the vaginal delivery of an infant born to a Gambian mother who experienced female circumcision! The mother has no clitoris and a great deal of scar tissue that actually shortened her vaginal opening. The scar was well healed, however the anatomical changes that occurred as a result of the circumcision made for a complicated birth of her baby girl. Although this is not a common issue that we as midwives in the US encounter, it is possible that throughout the course of one's midwifery career you may experience this. I serve a diverse population of women of color including women from the continent of Africa.
There are some practices that the MD used during the birth that I do not approve of but again, I am not going to elaborate on them as that is not the focus of this post.
What population do you serve? As a midwife, would you be able to serve a woman who has experienced this ritual without judgment?
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
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