In the event of the loss of an unborn child

The global platform Women of the World resumes this October, month of perinatal bereavement, the campaign for perinatal bereavement support and dignified treatment of babies who die before birth, responding to the need of a very high number of mothers and fathers who carry this wound in their hearts, so many families with a bitter memory and a goodbye they could not give.

Upon the death of an unborn child, as part of the bereavement support protocol, we ask that parents be given full information on the treatment of the body, burial options and that bodies NOT be collected in the same containers as surgical remains.

To this end, the platform has launched a campaign to collect signatures and is working intensively with health policy makers in various countries.

You can sign the petition here: https://womenworldplatform.com/ante-la-muerte-de-un-bebe-antes-de-nacer/

Numerous studies emphasize the importance, both anthropologically and psychologically, of the funeral rite in the process of accepting a loss; it is also fair and necessary for parents to have all the information about the options that exist for burial.

You can read and download here our psychological report prepared by an expert psychologist.

Each country has its own legislation and it is true that progress can be seen at the political and hospital level, but still, in society as a whole, perinatal bereavement is a silenced cry that receives little empathy.

Undoubtedly, there is general agreement on the need to move forward in this direction, but there is little legislation and few practical measures to transform good intentions into action. For example, in the United States, only 10 of the 50 states have laws regarding the burial of fetal remains. In Spain, although the Constitutional Court issued a ruling allowing parents to take charge of their baby's body, parents are not informed and there are no mechanisms in place to facilitate the burial or farewell.

Our platform advocates 3 basic proposals that represent a first radical change in bereavement support:

1. that a specific container be used for the bodies of babies, that they not be considered surgical remains. Because my baby is not the same as a cyst or an appendix.
2. that parents be offered to be present at the routine cremation of the contents of the container in which their infant's remains were collected.
3. that all of this be reported in a hospital protocol that is given to the parents by default. A protocol that explains what is going to happen and what options the parents have and give their express consent.

To this end, the platform has launched a campaign to collect signatures and is working intensively with health policy makers in various countries.

You can join the signature collection here: https://womenworldplatform.com/ante-la-muerte-de-un-bebe-antes-de-nacer/