Ms Yara Alagha:

I will come in on this question, and perhaps Ms Nasib may also wish to comment. It is important to note the context in which our maternity research was conducted and commissioned. One of our non-migrant board members, who was pregnant at the time and attending maternity-related medical appointments noticed that while Muslim women and women of minority backgrounds were attending the necessary pre- and post-maternity medical appointments, other services offered by maternity hospitals, such as breastfeeding groups or baby massage classes or other sessions and meetings were also important, especially for new mothers. That sparked an interesting discussion among the board members, and we decided to investigate further.

We have concerning findings. We found that what is necessary are translation services and culturally-appropriate services, which includes catering for dietary needs, language barriers and proper communication. Our research also found that many women went without labour pain relief because of simply not understanding and the challenges posed by language and culture. There is much to be said about this issue, if Ms Nasib wishes to come in here as well.