An analysis of obstetric violence among low-income urban women: A case study of Mabvuku Hospital in Harare, Zimbabwe

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abstract This article explores the everyday narratives of women’s experiences of obstetric violence in public maternity systems in Zimbabwe. It examines women’s perception and knowledge of obstetric violence, analyses the nature and prevalence of obstetric violence and evaluates the factors that influence women experiencing obstetric violence. The study employed a qualitative research approach that sought thick descriptions and narratives from 20 women who had given birth at Mabvuku Hospital in Harare. The research found that women experience various forms of discrimination, abuse and disrespect in maternity settings. Women have largely normalised some of these experiences as everyday, accepted parts of childbearing in maternity wards. The study highlights how age, class, and lack of power in medical contexts shape women’s experiences of obstetric violence. This is compounded by the lack of knowledge around women’s rights in medical contexts and the lack of accountability on the part of medical personnel. We conclude that class and power are at the root of understanding how poor women often experience disrespectful and demeaning experiences in maternal care.