ABSTRACT

China came out of the shadow of communist ideology after the death of its leader Mao Tse-tung and the prosecution of his associates in 1976. From 1978 on, the country started a reform program in which science, technology, and a capitalist economy came to dominate national life; childbirth and health care did not escape this drive. In 1979, the Ministry of Health began advocating economic incentives in health care and by 1980, a bill was passed to allow medical doctors to practice privately. This chapter traces the roots of the changes to rethink what they mean to China and the world, and to use the example of the recent midwifery project to suggest what is needed to make improvements in Chinese childbirth. The hospitalization of childbirth in China has also largely ignored the traditional place of family and intimate support in maternity care. The modern, efficient hospitals would not tolerate the meddling of family members, especially in childbirth care.