Top midwife's concerns over ultrasound parties

The Royal College of Midwives’ Chief Executive Professor Cathy Warwick has spoken of her fears regarding the increasing ‘commercialisation and commodification of pregnancy and childbirth’.

In particular, she is worried that the increasing popularity of ‘foetus parties’, where people gather to view 3D and 4D scan pictures, is placing unnecessary pressures on mothers-to-be.

Professor Warwick remains concerned that, by celebrating too early, should a problem emerge post-party, a woman might need extra counselling after raising everyone’s expectations.

She writes: “Births are becoming more complex...The ageing of mothers means greater demands on maternity services as pregnancies to older women are more likely to involve complications, which demand more of midwives and others in the maternity team.”

She also said that the purpose of ultrasound was to detect potential problems in a pregnancy and the current use of scans for entertainment and as a ‘consumer tool’ raised ethical questions.

She concludes by asking: “Is this ‘yummy mummy’ or WAG parenting taken to its absolute zenith and what does it do to the child being ‘branded’ in this way?”