88 Pregnancy and Childbir th
Difficult
Births
TRANSPORT!
Cord comes out before the baby
If the cord comes out before the
baby’s head, the cord gets squeezed
when the head comes down. The
baby can die or get brain damage
from too little oxygen.
cord showing at
What to do:
opening of vagina
If the baby is coming very fast and is almost born, have the
mother push as hard as she can in a squatting position and get
the baby out.
If the baby is not coming
quickly, put the mother in the
knee-chest position, help her
to stop pushing, and get her to
a hospital. The baby needs to
be born by operation.
Baby’s shoulders get stuck
If a baby is very big, the shoulders can sometimes get
stuck after the head is born. The baby can die or be
harmed if it is not born soon.
What to do:
1. Have the mother get on her hands and knees,
and push. The stuck shoulder will usually slip
out and the baby can be born.
2. If the hands-and-knees position
does not work, bring the
mother’s bottom to the edge
of the bed. Ask her to pull her
knees back as far as she can
while someone else pushes
straight down just above the
mother’s pubic bone. Have the
mother push as hard as she can
during her next contraction.
3. If the baby still does not come out, slide your
hand along the baby’s neck until your fingers
are touching the baby’s back. Push the baby’s
upper shoulder forward at the same time the
mother pushes with a contraction.
DO NOT
try to pull
the baby
out.This can
hurt or kill
the baby.
IMPORTANT DO NOT let anyone push on the TOP of the mother’s
womb. This can make the baby more stuck and can tear the mother’s womb.
Where Women Have No Doctor 2012