Disabled women in the UK face significant maternity inequalities

Disabled women in the UK, who make up 20% of women of reproductive age, face significant inequalities in maternal and neonatal outcomes according to a new report.

The report, from The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and the Missing Billion Initiative (MBI), reviewed existing evidence on maternity care access and the experiences and outcomes of the 2.9 million disabled UK women aged 15-49.

Key findings of the report include that disabled women in the UK have:

• 44% higher odds of stillbirth or neonatal mortality for infants born to disabled mothers
• 30%-69% higher odds of caesarean birth
• 35%-70% lower odds of breastfeeding
• 51%-111% higher odds of longer postnatal hospital stays

The analysis found widespread challenges in accessing care, including inaccessible facilities and information, negative attitudes of healthcare providers, and lack of continuity of care.

The report calls for urgent action, including:

• The establishment of a UK committee - inclusive of disabled women - to assess and improve maternity services for disabled women
• Increased funding for disability-inclusive maternal health research
• The integration of disability considerations into national maternity care policy guidance
• The enhancement of maternity care delivery

Report co-author Professor Hannah Kuper, Director of the International Centre for Evidence in Disability at LSHTM and co-founder of the Missing Billion Initiative, said: 

"Our report shows that disabled women in the UK experience worse maternity care and neonatal outcomes, but that there is almost no policy guidance addressing this inequity. As a researcher, I am also shocked at the paucity of data on this important topic, including from the UK."

For the report the researchers reviewed the scientific literature on maternity care access, experiences and outcomes for disabled women in the UK, undertook an umbrella review of systematic reviews on maternity care for disabled women globally, assessed the inclusion of disabled women in maternity care guidance documents in the UK and recommended actions to strengthen policy, programmes and research on disability-inclusive maternity care in the UK.

The report, Disparities in maternity care for disabled women in the United Kingdom, is published on the MBI website.