The Ministry for Health considers that the number of caesareans in private hospitals is "excessive".
El Mundo 19/10/2006
The government considers that the percentage of caesareans in the private health sector is "excessive", standing at 35.6% of births in private centres compared to 21.57% in public centres. In a parliamentary reply, the Ministry for Health indicated that the percentage of caesareans exceeds the figure recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO) which is about 15%.
The statement explains that there is currently some debate about whether that figure should be raised in line with social changes, such as the increase in the age of mothers; and technological changes that have seen a rise in pregnancies through artificial fertilisation. Even taking this into account, it adds, the number of caesareans is still excessive in private centres and "it doesn't seem reasonable to suppose that this is due to more complicated cases, since one would actually expect the opposite, given that the most complicated births are usually attended in public centres". According to recent studies caesareans carried out without a justifiable medical reason increases by 2.9 times the mortality of babies in the first weeks of birth compared to vaginal births. The risk of complications for the mother and the baby is also much higher after a caesarean. For this reason the WHO recommends its use only in those cases where it is necessary for medical reasons.
The text given to Parliament at the request of Angel Pérez, the Minister for Health, also includes data about the epidural anaesthesia, which is administered in 43% of births in public centres, although since centres do not have to record this information, the figure may not be exact. The statement concludes that, "from the point of view of offering quality care in childbirth, the aim should be that all women who prefer to have an epidural can have one, which is very different from hospitals setting an objective of 100% of births with anaesthesia."