Rising Rates of Caesarean Section in Urban Nepal

  • Sulochana Dhakal Rai Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Bournemouth University, UK.
  • Pramod Raj Regmi Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Bournemouth University, UK.
  • Edwin van Teijlingen Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Bournemouth University, UK.
  • Juliet Wood Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Bournemouth University, UK.
  • Ganesh Dangal Kathmandu Model Hospital, National Academy of Medical Sciences (NAMS), Kathmandu, Nepal.
  • Keshar Bahadur Dhakal Karnali Provence Hospital, Surkhet, Nepal.

Abstract

The rising rate of caesarean section in urban Nepal is alarming as the lack of access for women in rural areas to emergency obstetric care, putting lives at risk. The latter is referred to as ‘Too little too late’. At the same time, the sharp rise in caesarean section rates in cities presents the other extreme: “Too much too soon”. The overuse of caesarean section causes harm, unnecessary costs, and misuse of health resources. Availability of private hospitals and increasing hospital childbirth may contribute to the rising rate of caesarean section. This article highlights the rising rate of caesarean section in urban Nepal.
Keywords: Caesarean section; emergency obstetric care; Nepal.

Published
2019-01-28
How to Cite
Dhakal RaiS., RegmiP. R., TeijlingenE. van, WoodJ., DangalG., & DhakalK. B. (2019). Rising Rates of Caesarean Section in Urban Nepal. Journal of Nepal Health Research Council, 16(41), 479-480. https://doi.org/10.33314/jnhrc.v16i41.1750