China advances efforts to build birth-friendly hospitals

BEIJING -- China is intensifying efforts to build birth-friendly hospitals nationwide, aiming to deliver higher-quality maternity services, streamline diagnosis and treatment procedures, and create a more welcoming environment for mothers and their newborns.

A guideline document issued by the National Health Commission (NHC) and three other authorities outlines measures to integrate perinatal depression screening into routine prenatal and postnatal care. The move seeks to detect mental health issues in pregnant women at an early stage and facilitate timely intervention or referral.

To address concerns about labor pains, the document calls for the development of warm, comfortable delivery room environments, patient-centered childbirth services, and strengthened professional support and emotional care for women during labor. The provision of non-pharmacological pain relief methods such as professional labor companionship is encouraged, alongside comprehensive access to pharmacological pain relief services.

When capacity allows, hospitals are also encouraged to permit family members to accompany women during childbirth, per the guidelines.

According to the document, birth-friendly hospitals are expected to account for 90 percent of all medical institutions providing maternity services in China by 2030.

An NHC official has said that in the process of building birth-friendly hospitals, local authorities should establish reasonable pricing mechanisms for obstetric services to ensure the financial burden of basic medical expenses does not increase for pregnant women.