Women with Disabilities: Policies Governing Procedure and Practice in Service Provision in Ireland during Pregnancy, Childbirth and Early Motherhood

In November 2007 the National Disability Authority commissioned research, in a joint initiative with the National Women’s Council of Ireland, to explore the strengths and weaknesses of publicly funded Irish health services provided to women with disabilities in relation to pregnancy, childbirth and early motherhood. The research, funded by the National Disability Authority, was carried out by a team of researchers from the School of Nursing and Midwifery in Trinity College, Dublin.

The second report from the project, Women with Disabilities: Policies governing procedure and practice in service provision in Ireland during pregnancy, childbirth and early motherhood, is a review of policy governing maternity service provision for women with disabilities in Ireland and in nine other jurisdictions. The report also contains the findings from a survey conducted with all 19 publicly-funded maternity hospitals/units in Ireland to identify the existence of policies in these facilities.