University of Iceland

On our second day in Iceland we met with three speakers at the University of Iceland on various topics regarding women’s health. At the University, our first speaker spoke specifically on the topic of trauma and the study that the University is working on at the moment to identify how the prevalence of trauma and stress effect the health and wellness of the woman. The data used in the study measures physical violence, emotional abuse through the internet and social media, and sexual abuse. Currently, 1/3 of the population of women in Iceland are participants for the study and they are looking forward to their final results in 2019. The second speaker focused on cesarean section rates and explained how the optimal percentage defined by The World Health Organization (WHO) is 15%. WHO says that percentages higher than this cause statistics of maternal and infant mortality to rise and percentages below 15, are shown to be detrimental to a countries mortality rate as well. The last speaker shared a pilot study that she was involved in, regarding prenatal care. In Iceland, most prenatal care is free due to Universal Healthcare, making it one of the safest countries in the world to have a baby. However, the pilot study was held to see how group sessions involving the partners and facilitated by midwives, could improve the pregnancy process. These sessions were integrated into the ten standard appointments that women have before labor. The results found that these group sessions were very beneficial for the mother and her partner in answering questions, providing education, and decreasing anxiety about pregnancy, labor, and parenthood.